Charkha, `Dear Forgotten Friend' of widows: reading the erasures of a symbol
- 2004
- p.3113-120.
- 10 Jul
In Gandhian discourse, the charkha signifies `decentralisation against centralised production', `the sole remedy' for the dwindling handloom industry and the traditional sector in general. However, away from this, images of this popular symbol, and Gandhian `swaraj' acquired various shapes in the domain of political culture. The attempt here is to write a history of the spinning wheel with reference to strategies of gender politics that went into the construction of this semiotic space. This reading of erasures of a popular Gandhian symbol contributes to an understanding of the different layers of the politics of disjuncture which operate at many levels. - Reproduced.