The political and social climate of India right now has been hit by a storm of outrage over a series of injustices doled out to marginalised communities--Dalits, tribal women, Muslims and so on. From the Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula who committed suicide in Hyderabad University after facing discrimination, social boycotting and ostracisation, to the uproar in JNU after students such as Kanhaiya Kumar and Umar Khalid were labelled as ‘anti nationals’, to the recent silencing of voices in Chhattisgarh and brutal attack on tribal activist Soni Sori, a series of events have added to the growing intolerance across the country.
As polarised opinions have divided the country, where both left and right sides have garnered support across India and social media, these opinions have spurred a whole range of art. And we’re particularly interested in the political art that raises its voice against human rights violations, since art is one of the most powerful tools of expression, especially in the climate of silencing apparent in India today.
From cartoons to sketches to satirical comic strips, we’ve collected a set of deliciously clever dissent art, calling out the government for arbitrary charges of sedition, brahminical politicking, unreasonable labels of ‘anti nationalism’, silencing of voices and Chhattisgarh and more. So scroll on for the hilarious satirising of India as it stands today, and save these for your next social media post.

Words: Rhea Almeida