Session Name: [Humanities Across Borders] Care, Custody, Conservation I
2 - Circus Animals and Indian State: Care, Custody and Conservation
Monday, July 29, 2024
14:00 – 15:45 (GMT+7)
Presentation Abstract Animals have always been an indispensable part of circus around the world until the recent legal proscriptions in many countries and the emergence of such concepts as ‘Noveau Cirque’. Animals in circus bring to the fore a long tradition of animal trade, taming, training, and human accompaniment, raising significant questions regarding their acquisition, captive life, breeding and changing relation to forests and wilderness over the periods. This paper explores various discourses around animals, both wild and captive, in relation to the bans of wild animals in circus in India and the legal battles that ensued. Indian state acted as a custodian of circus animals by banning in the name of benevolence for conservation. What are the ramifications of such a legal intervention?
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