The Semiotics of Court Society in Contemporary Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Precolonial notions about kings and courtiers penetrate all levels of contemporary political culture in India. These notions influuence relations between “royal politicians” and their constituents. My paper focuses on Jayalalithaa Jayaram (JeyalalitaJeyaram, 1948–2016), a political tactician who astutely deployed the signifiers of royalty and religion to capture power in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. I argue that Jayalalithaa was able to retain her leadership status for a quarter century by drawing from the repertoire of a traditional court society. Jayalalithaa’s political portraiture, commissioned by her faithful courtiers, melded symbolic imagery—lions, scepters, the sun, and temples—with text that hailed the leader as a god-queen. My analysis of these advertisements, prominently displayed in urban public spaces, focuses on their localized resonance for an audience well versed in Tamil, specifically Dravidian (as opposed to Aryan or Sanskrit) history and culture.