Water Shapes Life: Riverine Rights, Indigenous Struggles in India & the Politics of Memory with Rahul Ranjan - Episode 37

Rising with the Tide

Spring comes around and the scenery around us comes alive once again! Jamie accidentally falls into a river and, feeling wronged by Mother Nature, decides its time to learn about them. Know thy enemy, I guess. Your hosts depart for the eastern parts of India where they're gracefully welcomed by Rahul Ranjan, postdoc fellow at Oslo Met Univeristy.

Rahul's research on the rights of rivers, and its intersections with political struggles in India is invaluable. Our discussion touches on the insurrectionary figure of Birsa Munda, politics of anti-coloniality and anti-authoritarianism, what it means for rivers and water to have 'rights', as well as the role memory and manners of remembrance play in how we memorialise people and events. We trek back to our respective homes with a newfound appreciation of the complexities of our rivers, too often thought of as 'just' a river, and a glimpse into India's brutal, yet inspiring past through Indigenous memory.

You can find Rahul on Twitter - @Ranjana_Rahul

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Song for the episode: "Yesterday Once More" by The Carpenters