Page 72 - Communication Processes Volume 3 Communication Culture and Confrontation

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InterventIonIst tendencIes

In PoPular culture

Vibodh Parthasarathi

What is evident to any traveller in India is that the ‘democratic’ state,
the ‘free’ market and the ‘nationalist’ Hindu right are today the domin-
ant fulcrums of cultural production. In doing so, they have drawn on
elements of popular culture—be they cultural practices predating the
modern mass media, or those created and shaped by the latter. More-
over, they have harnessed the most significant techno-organizational
elements of contemporary media industry towards proliferating the
production and circulation of their culture-ware.

Prevailing Fulcrums of Culture

What is, however, not evident is that all three are involved in a rigor-
ous exercise of codifying elements of popular culture. While looking at
instances of these, it is important to take note of how each has drawn
from the experience of the other. In general, corporate advertising
often creates a series of messages from self-referential popular ‘text’.
The television ad campaign of the global giant Coke employs a range of
de-contextualized images of what is apparently ‘cricket culture’ towards
positioning its brand in India. Together with sponsoring key events,
Coke’s imagery seeks a fundamental change in perception—from