Pier Paolo Piciucco, PhD
Rebel Rebel: the Paradox of Mehta’s Unintentional Terrorism in Hari Kunzru’s Transmission
Hari Kunzru’s second novel, Transmission (2004), has justifiably secured fame to its author for its sparkling, humorous, and incisive mode of addressing the precarious predicament of the diasporic protagonist, the Indian programmer Arjun Mehta, after his migration to California. In reaction to learning of the decision of the AV software house to fire him, Mehta decides to create a virus in order to demonstrate how indispensable he is to them. Shown through a number of clamorous contradictions, which describe the idiosyncrasies inherent in the global system, the narration in Transmission has impressed its readers for the creation of various equivocal situations, in which Mehta starts spreading a virus that infects the whole world, to the point that some critics have even discussed his action as a terrorist act (Upstone 2010, Gauthier 2017 and Shelden 2017, among others). However, this markedly conflicts with his portrayal as an innocent, because the text unambiguously shows how genuinely unaware he is of the devastating consequences of his action. In this intervention/paper, Piciucco will try to come to terms with how Mehta can be seen as an “unintentional terrorist,” analyzing his case from a variety of distinct perspectives. Recent and non-recent studies on the use of violence in response to global forms of capitalism will be employed as a litmus paper to this specific case. The procedures for the release of aggressiveness, as well as the implications of repression affecting the unconscious mind in Sigmund Freud’s theories, will equally be important to shed light on this incongruous behaviour. Finally, various anthropological studies will also be used in order to focus on Mehta’s roguish and subversive conduct as his being a trickster.
Erik Mortensen PhD
The Myth of a “United” States
This presentation will look at the polarization of American culture. It will explore the role of American myth-making in creating a shared culture and values. It will investigate how mythmaking helped create a shared American imagination, but it will also explore how that myth of unity has been fractured through time. These fractures have occurred from political, class, ethnic, and regional communities that have been constructed. It will explore how myth-making creates a sense of one national culture, and at the same time how it has led to the splintering and fragmented new myths and American identity. It will explore how there are competing views and identities of America and what it means to be American, and the links these have to imperialism and violence. It will examine case studies of the Seattle CHAZ and the January 6th siege of the capitol building in Washington DC. Both of these events involved extreme and violent actions in an aim to create or shape the community into a vision/myth of what it should be. These case studies will be compared and contrasted to earlier historical examples of actions and movements meant to challenge or create a new shared myth and/or identity of America. This presentation expands into a broader context of mythmaking and identity from Mortensen’s dissertation research on the myth of the vigilante hero.
Meera Shirodkar, PhD
Partition of India: Memories, Representations and Resonances in Contemporary Indian Cinema
The year 1947 bore witness to India gaining independence from two-hundred years of colonial rule and experienced partition of the subcontinent along sectarian lines, into two nations India and Pakistan. The partition was followed by a relentless and unprecedented spread of communal violence and rioting. An acute refugee crisis followed, claiming close to 2 million lives and led to the displacement of more than 15 million people. The chronicling and representation of this cataclysmic moment, and its far-reaching repercussions on millions of lives continue to pose complex challenges.
Historians critique the tendency of official historiography to selectively remember as opposed to commemorating people’s memories and experiences. There is a growing shift towards unraveling the devastating impact and consequences of this executive decision on the lives of people. In this context, this paper selects and analyses recent Indian cinematic works that have featured and given a platform to the memories and experiences of survivors. Some of the chosen narratives also attempt to address the future implications and consequences of Partition; thereby enabling a study of the evolution of Partition representation in Indian cinema from a contemporary perspective.
This paper draws on memory and trauma studies, discourses on representation in cinema, post-colonial perspectives, and the socio-cultural impact of refugee crises and forced migrations. The Indian films selected for this analysis fall within an earmarked timeframe from 2012-2020: Filmistaan (2012), Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013), PK (2014), Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015), Rajkahini (2015), Begum Jaan (2017), Manto (2018), Gold (2018), Bharat (2019), Kalank (2019). The chosen filmography takes a comprehensive look at recent Indian film productions as they re-imagine and re-create Partition or feature its memories, and consequences using distinct cinematic styles and treatments.
Meera Shirodkar, PhD
Dr. Meera Shirodkar completed her Ph.D. in Film from the University of Southampton, UK. She has a Master's in Mass Communication specializing in Audio-Visual Production from the Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication (Pune, India). She graduated from Hindu College, Delhi University with a degree in English (Hons). Over the course of her academic career, Meera has taught in some of the premier institutions of India including St Xavier’s College (Mumbai), Xavier’s Institute of Communication (Mumbai), Amity School of Film and Drama (Noida), YWCA (New Delhi), Lady Shri Ram College (New Delhi) to name a few. She is currently engaged as an Assistant Professor at Bennett University (Greater Noida). Her expertise extends to teaching the practical and theoretical aspects of film and its related subjects to students at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level. She has presented her research at several prestigious conferences at the University of Bristol (UK), University of Cardiff, (UK), Zhejiang University, (Hangzhou, China), Liverpool Hope University, (UK), London Centre for Interdisciplinary Research, (UK) among others. Meera was an invited panelist and presenter at the International Conference – ‘Curating Partition’ by De Monfort University, (Leicester, UK) and other noteworthy institutions in India, including at the India International Center (New Delhi). Meera is a member of the International – HUB for the Study of Hybrid Communication in Peacebuilding (HCPB), UK. https://hcpb.org.uk/ Published Article links: https://issuu.com/swwdtpgenderandsexualityresearch/docs/gendered_voices_... https://www.questionjournal.com/single-post/2019/05/20/filmistaan-a-love-for-cinema-that-forges-connections-across-time-nations-and-borders.There are chapters and conference papers that are slated to be published.
Pier Paolo Piciucco, PhD
Pier Paolo Piciucco is an Associate Professor at the Department of Foreign Languages, University of Turin, where he regularly teaches courses on English Literature. In 1999 he took a Ph.D. from the University of Bologna, working on contemporary Indian fiction in English: he later became a Lecturer in 2002 and an Associate Professor in 2019 at the University of Turin. Over the years he has mainly focused his concern on contemporary, postcolonial, and postmodern literatures, being these the most recurrent topics analysed in his research works. His monograph, “The Two Souls,” is a theory on the negotiations and compromises which gave rise to a totally marginalized form of art in South African Theatre during the Apartheid years. He has edited 8 books ('Contemporary Vulnerabilities' will be out by the time this conference starts) and is the author of about 50 articles.
Erik Mortensen PhD
Erik Mortensen is a contract professor at Humber College and in 2021 graduated with a Ph.D. Candidate from the Department of Humanities at York University. His dissertation focus is on examining the vigilante as a mythic figure in American culture and texts. He completed his MA at Wilfrid Laurier University from the Department of English and Film Studies, and his BAH at the University of Guelph with a double major from the Department of English and Theater Studies & History. Publications: "The Mode of Lynching: One Method of Vigilante Justice" Stand Your Ground Essay Collection (forthcoming) "Vigilant Citizens and Horrific Heroes: Perpetuating the Positive Portrayal of Vigilantes." Violence in American Popular Culture - Prager Press, 2015
