Of Clowns and Gods, Brahmans, and Babus

Book excerpt: Humour As A Competence Inherent In All Human Beings Defies Description. Its Variety Of Manifetations, In Contrast, The Countless Faces And Forms Of Humour Have Always Engendered Curiosity. For Centuries They Have Inspired People To Attempt To Pinpoint The Essence Of Humour. The Contributors To This Volume, However, Are Somewhat More Modest In Their Endeavors. Their Topic Is Humour In The Written And Oral Literatures Of South Asia. This Volume Contains A Broad Spectre Of Essays On Humour In Modern And Pre-Modern, In Classical And Folk, And In Written And Oral Literatures From Almost All Corners Of The Subcontinent. The Essays Treat The Subject From A Multitute Of Perspectives And Before The Background Of Different Theories Of Humour. Besides Promising An Enjoyable And Informative Reading, This Volume Is Also Expected To Draw More Attention To An Hitherto Neglected Field In South Asian Studies, And To Stimulate Further Research.