The small beach close to which I live is lined with concrete dustbins that serve as a modesty screen for lovers. I think of the 18th century poet-courtesan Muddupalani’s erotic epic, Radhika Santwanam, and of Bangalore Nagaratnamma, who reintroduced it to the world. “A prostitute had composed the book and another prostitute has edited it.” This was what the Telugu …
