On the afternoon of December 3, 2024, the Institute for International and Area Studies at Tsinghua University hosted an online lecture titled "Why Democracy Needs Cultivation: An Anthropological Argument from India " The keynote speaker was Professor Mukulika Banerjee from the Department of Anthropology at the London School of Economics. The lecture was hosted by Liu Bei, Doctoral student at IIAS. More than 60 people attended, including teachers and students from IIAS, as well as scholars from universities at home and abroad.

Professor Banerjee explored the cultivation of democratic culture through four compelling case studies, drawing on extensive ethnographic fieldwork in Indian villages: local scandals, collective rice harvesting, animal sacrifice during religious festivals, and collective participation on election day. Through meticulous data and vivid ethnographic observations, she provided an in-depth analysis of core values in India’s democratic culture, including cooperation, inclusiveness, competition, and equality.

Professor Banerjee emphasized that while Indian society is historically marked by divisive factors such as the caste system, these divisions are often mitigated in practice through collaboration and negotiation in agriculture, religious festivals, and political participation. She highlighted that elections are not merely political events but also "sacralized" public rituals that unite individuals across social strata, thereby reinforcing the foundation of democratic culture.

During the Q&A session, Professor Banerjee addressed questions from the audience on topics such as advancing women’s political participation in India’s multicultural context and how animal sacrifice reflects the Islamic ideal of equality. Using vivid examples from her fieldwork, she illustrated that nurturing democratic culture requires not only institutional frameworks but also daily practices and self-cultivation at both individual and community levels.

This lecture offered the audience a fresh anthropological lens for understanding democracy and inspired profound reflections on practicing democratic values in multicultural societies. The event concluded successfully amid a vibrant atmosphere of discussion and intellectual exchange.