Sumedha Raikar-Mhatre: Political discourse in S, M, L and XL

Jagadamb refers to the ancestral deity Tulja Bhavani whose shrine sits in the midsize city of Tuljapur in Osmanabad district But in presentday Maharashtra the term Jagadamb rises above the geographical address It is an embodiment of the feisty streetfighting youth belonging to the Marathas or other backward castes who owe their allegiance to a goddess who was also the motivation for Maharashtras mostrevered Chhatrapati Shivaji Flashed on hooded Tshirts and pullovers Jagadamb has emerged topmost among the potent watchwords currently dominating popular discourse Online sales and offline retail purchases across the state speak for the allseasons connect of Jagadamb which has takers irrespective of commemorative days and morcha schedulesAbhijit Tarphe a Dadarbased calligraphy artist creates tees that occupy the fun space between political discourse street lingo and social commentary PicAshish RajeApparel carrying longer mantras of Maratha loyalty mdash Ek Maratha Lakh Maratha Hoy Maratha and Amhi Shivrayanche Sainik mdash have enjoyed cyclical demand corresponding with the calendar of the 58 silent marches held last year As the anecdote goes Maratha Tshirts are in a politically dormant state at the moment But fiery speaker at the Maratha Kranti Morcha and advocate from Aurangabad Swati Nakhate Patil feels Tshirts are effective communication tools What better reminder of the time when we took to the streets for reservations and equal terms The identifiable catch lines recap our journey so far Tshirt messages she thinks help in creating a family of volunteers Shed know considering she is head of the Akka Foundation which has initiated a reform movement against socials ills like dowry and superstition among the Marathas The foundations signature Tshirt wears a generic slogan ndash Sarvansathi Sarva Kahi ndash which indicates a wider fight for everyones rightsSwati Nakhate Patil seen here with volunteers wearing their signature tee with the slogan Sarvansathi Sarva Kahi She heads the Akka Foundation which is fighting against socials ills She has been one of the main speakers at the Maratha Kranti Morcha over the last one yearThe MarAumlu00c2u0081thAumlu00c2u0081s is a collective term referring to an Indo Aryan group of Hindus Marathispeaking castes of warriors and peasants who created an empire covering a major part of India They are not alone in the fight for rights Another rights movement thats currently finding a reflection on Tshirts through creative slogans photographs and graphic designs concerns the Lingayat community They are seeking legal recognition as a religion distinct from Hinduism Inspired by the success of their counterparts in Karnataka the Lingayats in Maharashtra some of whom have thronged Mantralaya too are pressing for their religious minority status on Tshirts which sing paeans to 12th century social reformer philosopher and statesman BasaveshwaraThe Killa brand of tees focuses on Maratha pride associated with Chhatrapati Shivaji and his various fortsHe rejected temple worship by replacing it with direct worship of Shiva in the form of the Ishtalinga necklace the image of the linga set in a silver casket to be worn at all times close to the heart Little wonder that both Basaveshwara and the Shiv linga prominently feature on the Tshirts As a professor of history and a keen observer of progressive movement slogans Satarabased Amrut Salunkhe points out an interesting contradiction in the Lingayat factions Not all subsects recognise Basava as the founder but they dont seem to mind the Tshirt mdash available in Kannada and Marathi typography mdash carrying the phrase Jai Vishwaguru Dharmsansthapak Basaveshwar The dissident factions have not yet come up with a counter icon At this point two different Tshirt creatives wouldnt have helped in lobbying for the larger Lingayat brotherhood Salunkhe feelsTheme Tshirts honouring the men of letters in the Marathi cultural world have been in currency for two decades a recent manifestation was seen during a death anniversary of late Namdeo Dhasal whose fans wore the poetideologues world view on a memorial Tshirt The Bharatiya brand made use of faces of popular litterateurs like PL Deshpande and Narayan Surve just as it made good use of the Marathi Abhiman Geet and distributed Tshirts on Ashadi Ekadashi Holi and Ganesh Chaturthi They fashioned kidcentric lyrical sequence tees on monsoon joys too Bharatiya has now extended its Tshirt ideation to Hindi and is soon to come up with Tamil messages Their fare was earlier vended at literary summits before it grew popular online somewhat in the provincial cosmos where the Killa Tshirts thrived Designed by Malvanbased artist and JJ School of Applied Art alumnus Arun Amberkar Killa garments focus on the fortresses built by Chhatrapati Shivaji The iconic rajmudra official signature Tshirt has been a hit for over a decade Amberkar calls the line lovingly crafted wearable and usable slivers of historyDadarbased calligraphy artist Abhijit Tarphe feels customised tees are a fun zone for current affairs to find a rightful space His Tshirts displayed apt word play Sonu tuza mazhyavar bharvasa nay ka when RJ Mallishka had attacked the BMC He captures the Mumbai commuter spirit in the line Mili to BEST Nahi Toh NextTarphe also has a range of occasionbased Tshirts like the tricolourfilled Independence Day special or Gokulashtamis Aya Makhan Chor creative It is another story that Tshirts for Gokulashtami and Holi usually are gifted by political party leaders chiefly Shiv Sena Shakha PramukhsJai Bhim Tshirts as a communitybuilding tool have worked well over the years not just for the April 14 Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti or the December 6 Mahaparinirvan Din The apparel also comes in handy for Buddha Jayanti and during any political rally Dalit groups organise This year a Goregaonbased youth association designed a special Tshirt declaring Mazhi Chaityabhoomi Swacchabhoomi My clean Chaityabhoomi It served two political purposes an affirmation of the Swacch Bharat mantra challenging the stereotypical notion of Dalits arriving from rural Maharashtra who converge at Dadars Shivaji Park Chaityabhoomi and litterTshirt messaging extends to a range of causes mdash Separate Vidarbha Who Killed Judge Loya Make Women Safe in India Rape Roko India Against Corruption Donate Eyes Pinkathon run against breast cancer It has also been used to add cohesion to groups I am with Anna Hazare Desh Me Narendra Pradesh Me Devendra or merely declare strength Dr B R Ambedkar King Number 1 or sport a vibe Dude Please Thane is not Bombay Delhi is about Mera Baap Kaun Hai Mumbai is about Who I am Tshirts can help start a conversation from the polite to the politicalSumedha RaikarMhatre is a culture columnist in search of the subtext You can reach her at sumedharaikargmailcomCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest 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