Devdutt Pattanaik

Homophobia is Subtle in Gurudom

Most of these gurus do oppose the criminalising of homosexuality, and so appear to be modern. However, they do see homosexuality as a deviance (or its Sanskrit equivalent), or a 'fluidity' that needs explanation, management and re-alignment

The Sexuality of Villains (And the Story That Bollywood will not Tell)

The heroine/hero is heterosexual and chaste, essentially hetero-normative. The villain is homosexual and deviant. While everyone is talking about historical accuracy and creative license, few are noticing the closet homophobia uniting filmmakers, playwrights and critics across party lines.
devdutt pattanaik, illustration

The Real Ramrajya

While Ram includes hijras into his Ayodhya, does the republic of India? Hijras see themselves as a third gender, but do their passports say so? Why do we want to force them into one gender or another?
lord jagannath puri

Krishna, The Girl

The mood that Krishna evokes with this feminine adornment is one of love and affection and play, a breakaway from the rigidity of those who control and comment on society today.

On Krishna’s Chariot Stands Shikhandi

Shikhandi embodies all queer people – from gays to lesbians to Hijras to transgendered people to hermaphrodites to bisexuals. Like their stories, his story remains invisible.

Your Smile, My Tail

When Hanuman returned from Lanka with a burned tail, and recounted his adventures, many monkeys of Kishkinda burst out laughing. “So, you got your tail burned t... Read More...

Intolerance Through The Lens of Homophobia

Intolerance has always been around. Homosexuals have lived with it for a very long time. Nobody is interested in removing the real/perceived intolerance. Everybody seems to be more worried about branding!

Love in the Time of Hate

Young India needs to find the strength and patience to face the volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity of India, find innovative ways to live together in diversity, and not be afraid of rapidly changing ecosystems

Hatred is not Divine

The idea of Judgment Day (qayamat, in Urdu) is not found in Hinduism, or Buddhism and Jainism, for that matter. It’s found in Abrahamic mythology and even in Gr... Read More...

Bromances from Mythology

  Bromance in India means yaarana, dostana. We saw it on full display when Jai and Veeru rode on bikes in the 1975 film Sholay. In 1990, journalist Asho... Read More...

Devdutt Pattanaik

Devdutt Pattanaik is a renowned author, mythologist, and leadership consultant, whose work focuses on deriving management insights from mythology to reveal a very Indian approach to modern business. He has authored over 30 books, many of them best-sellers like Myth = Mithya, Business Sutra, The Pregnant King, and Jaya: An illustrated retelling of the Mahabharata