Harvard’s South Asian Studies department has found itself at the center of a growing online storm after an artwork on its website prompted sharp criticism and accusations of bias. The controversy was sparked by the Hindu Union of North America, which accused the university of “blatant Hinduphobia” in visuals for its junior Sanskrit course.On “TheThe art is assigned to junior Sanskrit classes, and the group accuses the university of introducing students to Sanskrit, “Hindu’s sacred language,” in a “dark, manipulative and oppressive manner” as much as the religion itself.“This is how students are introduced to Sanskrit, one of the oldest languages ​​that gave birth to classical literature, art, music, etc. It is the mother of many languages ​​in the world,” the post added.In a follow-up post, the coalition also referenced an incident in 2020 when Harvard University Press published “another Hinduphobia cartoon” to promote a book about caste written by university professor Ajantha Subramanian. It claims Hinduphobia has a “long shelf life” in universities.The post sparked a heated debate online, with many users accusing the university of being biased against Hindus.“@Harvard, how much money are you getting for your anti-Hindu attitudes? What price do you have to pay to treat Hindus and Hinduism the same as other faiths?” one user asked.Another added: “There is clearly an attempt to portray Sanskrit in a dark, questionable and sinister way. The art itself is not the problem. The problem is the blatant Hindu hatred framed by an institution of learning.” While many called for an apology from the university.However, as the conversation evolved, new context began to emerge. Interestingly, one of the comments under the post claimed that the artwork was created by Indian artist Anirudh Sainath, who creates his own artwork under the brand Molee Art. Titled “The Puppet Master,” it depicts the Hindu epic Mahabharata as Krishna’s Ras Leela, a story orchestrated by a Hindu god. Furthermore, according to one user, the artist, who was once their friend and now no longer exists, was known for creating devotional artworks of Hindu gods.“I know Harvard is biased against Hindus – I’m not sure if this picture is an example,” one user added.The second artwork mentioned in the post is titled “The Millstone of the Caste System” and was created around 1917 by the late Indian artist and cartoonist Gaganendranath Tagore. It is a satirical print meant to express the hypocrisy and oppression of society within the Brahminical caste. It depicts the grotesque scene of priests crushing ordinary people under huge millstones.
