118 SOCIAL SCIENTIST Where a genuine issue is taken up, the perception of the problem is fuzzy resulting in either glorifying the traditional institutions or indulging in a very crude critique of them. One festival cum seminar10 attempted to bring to the national stage that group of women who have always performed, who continue to perform, often under very difficult circumstances and who are finding themselves increasingly marginalised and pushed out by a society where the context in which music and other entertainment occurs has changed. In its seminar sessions, the festival made an attempt to understand from a socio-historical perspective, the role and contribution of these women to the development of Indian music and dance. The fact that the attempt could not really succeed" was in great part due to the fact that there are as many opinions and perceptions on just what the women-and-muslc-question was about as there were seminarists. It was significant that the discussions were marked by a distinct note of apology. Repeatedly, middle class artistes stressed that they were not 'cheap' women. Women from the traditional singing families who have managed to-move out of that context refused to discuss any social issues, but focussed only on musical techniques and were preoccupied with proving that thumri-dadra12 are not after alF, as is popularly believed, 'upa shastriya* music. A spokesman (male) of the traditional singers emphasised the purity of stock, impeccable morals and rigorous training of the women and traced the low status suffered by them as due to 'Muslim influence'. The uncomfortable fact that traditionally sringarawas the mainstay of the woman singers repertoire could never be satisfactorily explained away. Justification for it was found by stressing that srmgara rasa is a path to the supreme (presumably asexual) bliss13, or even by quoting the many romantic khyal bandishes in even such * serious* ragas as Malkauns Significandy, the only statement that came through with some clarity was made by an 80-year old Chaudharayin of the old tradition—but this was too general a statement—that the relationship between women singers and society is a close one. The contradictions that could not be resolved surfaced again in audience responses. Thus one informed opinion14 was apalled at this attempt to revive such traditions and forms that had 'met with their natural death'15—though earlier the same writer had argued that such a festival was unnecessary precisely because there was no dearth of good singers of the tradional repertoire ('women with gooAeducation and culture16 presumably middle class) and that the styles were in, fact quite healthy. The music having been extricated from the baithaks and mehfils, was moreover now bestowed with 'respectibHit/ and spiritual bias'17. From these contradictory statements one can only deduce that the writer's sense of propriety was offended at the sight of women, whom he had hoped had passed into oblivion, taking Over the pure and spiritual concert stage, if only for a brief four days. The same writer also focused great attention on the actual music (to the neglect of even the hint of an issue-historical or social) which he condemned as light and coquettish and lamented the fact that all the work of the great music reformers had come to naught18. What is missed in such a view is that