MF CASR Lunch with Guro Warhuus Samuelsen: “Modi Magic”: Myth and Myth-making in Contemporary Hindutva Populism

Electorally one of the most successful political leaders in the contemporary world, India’s charismatic Prime Minister Narendra Modi nurtures a considerable personal following. While the Hindu nationalist movement has a long tradition of reshaping Hindu mythological narratives for the purpose of political mobilization, over the past decade we have seen the emergence of a majoritarian regime intent on undermining the rights of minority citizens and suppressing dissident voices. These developments are buttressed by an intensive labour of political myth building. What role does myth and myth-making play in contemporary Indian politics? In this talk, Guro W. Samuelsen will present her post-doctoral project on ‘Modi Magic’ as part of the larger research project Mythopolitics (NFR), led by Moumita Sen.