Recasting of Mappila Muslim masculinities: countering abjectification in Kerala’s Muslim children’s magazines

This paper critically examines Kurunnukal and Malarvadi, two prominent Muslim children’s magazines in Kerala, as cultural texts that generate counter-hegemonic narratives of Muslim identity and masculinity. Drawing on textual analysis of stories, illustrations, and historical retellings, alongside fieldwork interviews, the study argues that these publications construct alternative models of Muslim masculinity rooted in civic responsibility, ethical conduct, and historical consciousness. By foregrounding Muslim participation in everyday social life, anti-colonial struggles and the nation-building process, these magazines reframe Muslims not as outsiders or threats but as integral, morally engaged members of the Indian polity.