Who is the famous Dalit writer in India?
Who is the famous Dalit writer in India?
Om Prakash Valmiki was popularly known for his autobiography, Joothan, regarded a milestone in Dalit literature. He describes his life as an untouchable, or Dalit, in the newly independent India of the time of 1950s.
Is literature written by Dalits about their lives?
Dalit literature is an important stream of Indian writing in English and other languages of India. It is literature about the oppressed classes and caste of India. A tradition of Dalit writing can be traced to eleventh century writer Cekkilar [Periyapuranam].
Who writes Dalit literature?
One of the first Dalit writers was Madara Chennaiah, an 11th-century cobbler-saint who lived during the reign of the Western Chalukyas and who is also regarded by some scholars as the “father of Vachana poetry”. Another poet who finds mention is Dohara Kakkaiah, a Dalit by birth, whose six confessional poems survive.
Why do we study Dalit literature?
Dalit literature is one of the most important literary phenomena in post-independence India that is trying to restore dignity to a community that has been wronged for ages. Their struggles relating to their stigmatized identity as “untouchables” are finally being acknowledged.
What is the purpose of Dalit literature?
In an era when issues regarding human rights occupy the central stage, literary portrayals of marginalized communities are of utmost importance. Dalit literature is an attempt to bring to the fore the discrimination, brutality, and ostracization faced by the Dalit community in India.
What is the achievement of Dalit literature?
The main achievement of Dalit literature has been that it has managed to bind these various Dalit castes to a cultural and political identity without taking recourse to religion.
Why Dalit literature is important?
What is true of Dalit authors in India?
What has been internationally said of writers from the commonwealth or women writers can be said to be true of Dalit authors in India: what will be considered ‘literary’ or ‘literature’ in a period is often determined by those who hold power in society. This doesn’t mean however that there is no resistance to ‘literature’.
What do you need to know more about Dalits?
To know more about the life of Dalits, their challenges and stories of some community members who rose against all odds, here’s a list of 14 must reads New Delhi: The 11 July Una incident, in which four Dalits were beaten up by self-appointed cow protectors, has triggered much conversation around the community.
Who are the Dalit Panthers of Tamil literature?
The Dalit Panthers scandalise the world of Marathi literature, Bama creates a stir in Tamil writing, and this continues to go on. It is only with hindsight that many of these writers were accorded the place they demanded in literature, but today they inspire a generation of writers with their work.
Can brave stories start a serious dialogue on Dalit discrimination?
These brave stories are a strong step in starting a serious dialogue against Dalit discrimination, not just in academic circles, but out there in social media and as part of everyday conversations. (At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience.
