The Drama of Democracy: Performance and Politics with Dr. Lisa Björkman Artwork

American Institute of Indian Studies Podcast

The American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS) was founded nearly sixty years ago to further the knowledge of India in the United States by supporting American scholarship on India. The programs of AIIS foster the production of and engagement with scholarship on India, and promote and advance mutual understanding between the citizens of the United States and of India. AIIS seeks to provide access to scholarship about India to a wide and diverse audience.Through this podcast series, we hope to explore various exciting AIIS initiatives and engage with our current and former fellows, students, instructors, and researchers in this challenging time for connection.

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American Institute of Indian Studies Podcast

The Drama of Democracy: Performance and Politics with Dr. Lisa Björkman

April 24, 2026 • The American Institute of Indian Studies

0:00 | 32:39

In this episode, we’ll hear from Lisa Björkman on her new book: Drama of Democracy: Political Representation in Mumbai. Dr. Bjorkman explains her approach to democracy through performance, emphasizing audience, interpretation, and "uptake" in how political displays are encountered and evaluated. The conversation explores representation as an embodied, real-time process shaped through rallies, crowds, and affective communication, and considers how Mumbai’s political theatricality challenges common assumptions about truth, emotion, and authoritarianism.

Drama of Democracy: Political Representation in Mumbai is available now through The University of Minnesota Press.

For more information about AIIS programs, visit indiastudies.org.

Produced by AIIS
Intro and Outro music: “Desh” by Stephen Slawek