New Delhi: The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has decided to restore the original image of the iconic ‘Dancing Girl’ of Mohenjo-daro in its Class 9 Arts textbook after criticism over a modified version that showed the ancient bronze figurine with its bare torso covered.
NCERT Director Dinesh Saklani confirmed the decision when asked whether the retouched image in the textbook would be replaced with the original depiction.
The controversy erupted after The Indian Express reported that the image of the 4,500-year-old Indus Valley Civilisation artefact in Madhurima, NCERT’s Class 9 Arts textbook, had been digitally altered, with the figurine’s torso shaded over to create the impression that it was clothed.
The ‘Dancing Girl’, one of the most recognisable artefacts of the Harappan civilisation, has appeared in NCERT textbooks for at least 25 years, including during previous NDA governments, without any part of the figure being obscured. The image appears in the opening chapter, ‘History of Arts’, of NCERT’s new arts education series introduced under the National Education Policy and National Curriculum Framework.
The altered depiction drew criticism from historian Michel Danino, who had earlier revealed, as reported by The Indian Express, that NCERT officials had objected to prominently displaying the nude figurine in a Class 6 Social Science textbook because it could become “controversial”.
Danino had argued that if the figurine was considered inappropriate for children, they should also be barred from viewing it in the National Museum, where the original sculpture is displayed.
Following the publication of the report, Danino criticised the modified image, describing it as “wrong and unfair to the student”. He told The Indian Express that “the shading of her trunk is an act of censorship” and that the alteration amounted to creating “a fake artefact which exists nowhere”.
According to a senior NCERT official, the corrected image will be uploaded in the digital version of the textbook and incorporated in all future reprints, although copies already printed and distributed to schools cannot be recalled.
The episode is the latest in a series of controversies surrounding the Dancing Girl. In 1997, BJP leaders objected to the inclusion of the nude figurine in a Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation diary, arguing that it could negatively influence children. In 2017, a paper published in the Indian Council of Historical Research journal Itihaas claimed that the statuette represented Goddess Parvati.
The figurine also sparked debate in 2023 when the mascot of the International Museum Expo, unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and inspired by the Dancing Girl, appeared fully clothed and lighter-skinned, drawing criticism from some quarters over what they described as a “sanskari” makeover.
NCERT’s decision to restore the original image appears to have brought a swift end to the latest controversy, reigniting a longstanding debate over the representation of ancient artefacts in educational materials and the balance between historical authenticity and contemporary sensitivities.
