Leisure has been crucial to the existence of human beings today. Social development requires both work and leisure in a balanced manner. Leisure is cultural in nature hence; different societies have different concepts and types of leisure. In this manner leisure has been structural to every society. In the development scenario despite criticisms social development holds the key towards the human development. Thus leisure is imperative for both social and human development.
Attending a rock concert, playing videogames (possibly online), learning how to dance, no matter your age; being part of a motor bikers reunion, attending a cooking or a knitting course, no matter your gender; participating in a religious celebration or a cultural initiative, being a witness of a wedding ceremony performed with a ritual different from your own. This is postmodern leisure. The traditional borders between age, gender, ethnicity and culture seem to fade today. Yet, such borders are also re-instated and exacerbated as a consequence of forces – often market-driven (men’s and women’s sports, children’s games, black music, etc.) – that aggregate and select behaviors in distinct clusters of leisure consumption. In postmodern society both dimensions co-exist. There is no longer a clear-cut distinction between them, and if the case, it is always voluntarily, temporarily and occasionally chosen. Identity is less defined by the traditional ascribing markers of belonging than by the changing meanings alternately given to them.
Anthropological insights would be relevant to understand different patterns of leisure across age, gender, ethnicity and culture. This panel would focus on the above categories in general and leisure among the indigenous communities in particular. They have some unique ways of sports and cultural events which need to be analyzed.
