“My Words are my Weapons” A Conversation with Sharan Kumar Limbale, India’s Champion of the Downtrodden

My mother is an untouchable, while my father is a high caste from one of the privileged classes of India. Mother lives in a hut, father lives in a mansion. Father is a landlord; mother, landless. I am akarmashi (half-caste). I am condemned, branded illegitimate. – Sharan Kumar Limbale, Akarmashi

When Sharan Kumar Limbale, the inimitable icon of Dalit writing in India, published his magnum opus Akarmashi (The Outcaste) in 1984, it shook the complacent Indian literary sensibility and changed the racial/caste discourse forever. In this face-to-face interview, Limbale discusses his views on issues of import concerning both Indian society and literature without inhibitions, shedding light on his role both as activist and literary genius.

Interviewers: In terms of the subaltern discourse, how do you view the connection between African American and Dalit voices?

Limbale: It is always fruitful to think in terms of discrimination and exploitation not only with respect to Hindu society but to see them in relation to changing perspectives of the subaltern predicament everywhere in the world. The comparison between African American literature and Dalit writings is always very enlightening. Through my awareness of African American writings, I have learnt that the existence of Dalits is not confined merely to regions of India but has pervaded the sensitivity of people across regional and national boundaries. It is literally a global issue. I may mention here that Dr. B.R. Ambedkar had inspired and encouraged several Dalit scholars to go to the U.S. to study African American literature and to interact with activists in the field.

Interviewers: In what way did Dr. Ambedkar’s initiative help the Dalit cause?

Limbale: Prior to this shared experience, we had begun to write but we were not aware of how the Dalit voice should be represented in writing. African American literature, therefore, served as a model for Dalits in India who wanted to give expression to their suffering and agony on account of centuries of exploitation and discrimination. Time and again, Dr. Ambedkar pointed out to his devout followers that they could learn from their African American counterparts how to articulate their emotions with boldness and daring. Using the activist model provided by the Black Panther movement, we created the Dalit Panther movement in Maharashtra. We have many things in common with the African Americans in terms of discontent and the modes of protest.

Interviewers: You are one of the major voices in the Dalit pantheon in India today. You have written in several genres to awaken Dalit awareness. What impact do you think your writings have had on raising Dalit consciousness towards discrimination and exploitation for centuries?

Limbale: This is an important question. My writings have not only influenced the Dalit community but also people from the upper castes. Readers from the upper castes have appreciated Akarmashi and have admitted that my autobiography has brought to the fore the rotten society we inhabit. Many of them have emphasized the need to change a system that perpetuates caste discrimination. On reading my writings, especially Akarmashi, the Dalits have become aware of centuries of oppression and discrimination that they had been subjected to by caste Hindus. Dalit literature simultaneously makes the Dalits as well as the upper castes conscious of the gulf that exists even in a democratic nation like ours. I must not hesitate to say that many felt guilty for being a part of society that endorses and encourages discrimination. In a way, Dalit literature has worked consistently to bring Dr. Ambekar’s ideas for Dalit empowerment to the lowest rungs of society.

Interviewers: After the publication of Childe Harold's Pilgrimage in 1812, Byron had remarked, “I awoke one morning and found myself famous!” This may well apply to the sensation created by your Akarmashi when it exploded on to the Indian scene.

Limbale: You are right in that not many Dalit writers have been fortunate in getting such recognition, fame and money with the publication of one particular work. Many have devoted their entire life to writings without getting such publicity or renown.

Interviewers: Why do you think Dalit literature can be of interest to non-Dalits?

Limbale: Dalit writings highlight narratives of exploitation by bringing from the periphery to the centre issues that have been deliberately avoided or consciously evaded. Every new book seeks to describe or create a new society. Again, it is significant to note that exploitation of man by man cannot be limited to those who live in the margins of society. It can be seen to exist even among upper castes where the conflict between haves and have-nots is very common.

Cutting across caste barriers, such writings tend to unite people against injustice and enslavement. I strongly believe that anyone who patiently undergoes suffering and insult without retaliating against injustice commits a crime against humanity. Fighting against oppression amounts to worship of humanity in every sense of the term. Apart from my autobiography, I have written in every possible format and genre. I have written novels, essays, short stories, poems and criticism because I felt the urge to write and prove that we are capable of powerful creative renderings that can bring about a social revolution rather than merely forwarding the notion of creating art for pleasure.

Interviewers: That means you do not subscribe to the idea of art for the sake of art or entertainment.

Limbale: I never have and never will write for entertainment. I am a writer of people. How can I forget problems of my people? How can I neglect the cry of my people? The unrest of my people charges me – to think and to write. Dalit literature is not the literature of imagination. It is a literature of atrocities inflicted on the Dalits by high caste Hindus. Dalit writers must work continuously with their focus on social transformation.

Interviewers: Do you see Akarmashi from this standpoint?

Limbale: Akarmashi is my autobiography. But I don’t consider Akarmashi as a mere autobiography. I see it as a tale that narrates how a downtrodden and exploited individual stands up and fights against a discriminatory society. Akarmashi documents the terrible atrocities that have been committed against the marginalized in Indian society down the centuries in our civilization. Akarmashi projects my protest against a grossly discriminatory society. I have narrated my own agony and pain as a “half-caste” to dispel the myth that all is well with Indian society.

When I wrote stories people said the happenings I narrated were imaginative and not based on facts. So, I had to take to the writing of this autobiography to narrate the life I actually lived and the countless sufferings and humiliations I had myself experienced in my own life. Through the story of my own life I wanted to convince everyone that it is not simply an imaginative tale but a socio-political document that could not be ignored or refuted. The roots of an autobiography lie embedded in truth and not in imaginary ruminations. It is an emphatic projection of life lived firsthand. The autobiographical mode allows an author to project truth and ground reality as actually lived by him.

Interviewers: We would like to draw your attention to the Dalit Panther movement. Inspired by the Black Panther movement in America, the Dalit Panthers began in right earnest in Bombay with numerous Dalit writers and activists coming together. However, the movement quickly frittered away due to internal dissensions.

Limbale: This too may be attributed to the caste-ridden Hindu society which was careful to create hierarchies within the lower castes to generate conflict within themselves. In democracy contradictions are bound to emerge. Only a few decades ago, the Dalits were not even aware of their right to life, liberty and speech. Aware of such rights now, they have begun to articulate their passion and anger. With increasing education and expansion of the democratic principle such conflicts may get resolved or diluted. We have to work ceaselessly and wait for such a time to arrive.

Interviewers: Dr. Ambedkar embraced Buddhism with thousands of his followers perhaps as a reaction to caste-ridden Hindu society. He often stated, “I was born a Hindu but will not die a Hindu.” Do you think the embrace of Buddhism by Dalits will dilute caste conflict?

Limbale: Dr. Ambedkar, at that point of time, was absolutely justified in making such a statement. But in the context of the present moment, I think the ills inherent in Hinduism will not fade away with our embracing and running away from the location of conflict. We must remain in the religion and fight contradictions from within rather than seek an escape from Hinduism.

Interviewers: Do you think the situation that prevails today is no different from the one that existed before?

Limbale: Well, no. Changes have been there. New ways of thinking, the outlook of the new generation, scientific and technological advancement, the IT revolution etc. have affected a paradigm shift in peoples’ consciousness. The discriminatory modes too have undergone changes. Earlier a Dalit was offered tea in a separate cup. Today disposable cups and glasses have done away with such humiliating behavior. We travel in shared taxis without inquiring about the caste of co-passengers. The social media and the internet have given us the opportunity to connect with everyone on earth without the prejudice of caste, creed, color, religion or nationality.

Interviewers: How do you see Gandhi’s idea of nonviolence in relation to the Dalit struggle?

Limbale: The Dalit movement is essentially rooted in nonviolence as a means of protest. I cannot recall of any advocacy of violent means to resolve Dalit issues. We have never resorted to the use of violent means. We have fought with conviction but without guns. We have always believed in “Buddh” and not in “Yuddh” (war). We believe in the tenets of Gautam Buddha. I feel Gandhi imbibed the creed of nonviolence from Buddha. As such, we do respect Gandhi as one who propagated peace and nonviolence in our own times.

Interviewers: Coming to recent events, how, as an activist and writer, did you respond to Narendra Modi’s phenomenal triumph at the 2014 Lok Sabha polls? What, according to you, led to his unprecedented victory?

Limbale: I think it is good for all. Narendra Modi came in power because it is the need of time. Modi’s philosophy has thrown a challenge before us. This is a new area where we can concentrate and rebuild our roadmap. We cannot isolate this political mandate and power. The Modi style and fabric have given us the space to rethink in new directions to end our stagnation. I welcome this change.

Actually, I have been waiting for this blow. Modi is a great lesson. We know in the past there were two factions among Indian society: Brahmins and non-Brahmins. With the spread of education and democracy in India, the deprived masses came close to the centre. The common man became the starting point of every action. Here the factions took new dimension: Dalits and non-Dalits. This was a great struggle against injustice, inequality and discrimination on caste basis. However, unless people rise permanently above caste, religion, creed and political families or dynasties, democracy will continue to be threatened.

I love democracy. I advocate democracy, justice, fraternity, social freedom and equality. Like Tagore, each one of us must dream of a new nation without “narrow domestic walls.”

Interviewers: We would like to draw your attention to the lines penned by Waharu Sonavane, the Dalit poet, in his poem entitled “The Stage” wherein he laments the subtleties inherent in the modes and methods of discrimination practiced and perpetuated by those at the “centre” with regard to those on the periphery of the social fabric:

We did not go on to the stage,

Neither were we called.

We were shown our places,

Told to sit.

But they, sitting on the stage,

Went on telling us of our sorrows,

Our sorrows remained ours,

They never became theirs.

In the light of the dynamics of social change that seems to have narrowed the gulf between “ours” and “theirs,” what is your message to upcoming young writers in India and elsewhere?

Limbale: This is a very complex age. Everything is not simple. We are living in new, dynamic, very uncertain, very insecure and very changing circumstances. We should not think only of our caste or nation but of the world at large. The space has been widened. We should keep in our mind the predicament of deprived people in India, of atrocities, inequality, injustice, terrorism, and rampant corruption in every field of life. We have to think, read and write to create a new democratic social fabric, a very beautiful and strong India and a harmonious world without borders.

Interviewers: Many thanks for the preciously memorable time we have spent with you.