This essay examines the validity of a unified identity of Tamil Scheduled castes in light of thei... more This essay examines the validity of a unified identity of Tamil Scheduled castes in light of their differences regarding caste, history, culture, and politics. Different scheduled castes in Tamil Nadu converged at a certain period to form a unified caste identity. At a later stage, there were fissures or divergences within the community. The fissures within their unified caste movement can be attributed to the fact that their trajectories for emancipation and liberation from the early decades of the twentieth century to the contemporary period are distinct. The dissemination of caste ideologies through printed works enabled the construction of unique caste identities within the scheduled castes. The tracts written by Iyothee Thass Pandithar in his journal Oru Paisa Thamizhan, Elangovan's Arunthathiyar Varalarum Panpadum and Gnanasekaran's Mallariya Samuga Varalaru reiterate the demarcation of distinct caste boundaries among various scheduled castes in Tamil Nadu. This essay analyzes the significance of these works in the construction of distinct scheduled caste identities that defy a unified Dalit identity in Tamil Nadu.
The Madras Anti-Devadasi Act was passed in 1947 with the primary objective of liberating women fr... more The Madras Anti-Devadasi Act was passed in 1947 with the primary objective of liberating women from the oppressive norms of the Devadasi system. Sanctioned by religion, the institutionalization of the Devadasi system within the Hindu community legitimated women from certain caste groups to become ‘servants of god’. Through ritualistic norms, the Devadasis were wedded to God and the caste Hindu patriarchs were authorized to control the sexuality of the Devadasis. Given their vulnerable status in terms of caste, class, and gender, women from the castes lower in hierarchy were forced into the system. Despite the legislative intervention of the Anti-Devdasi Act seven decades ago, there are newspaper reports, which substantiate the continuation of the Devadasi systems in some villages in Tamil Nadu, reiterating the power of caste and sexist ideologies within Hindu society. In contemporary times, the Devadasis are mainly drawn from the Scheduled castes, otherwise referred to as Dalits. Li...
The religiously sanctioned Devadasi system in India exemplifies intersectional oppression of gend... more The religiously sanctioned Devadasi system in India exemplifies intersectional oppression of gender, caste, and sexuality. Historically, Devadasis, or “servants of God,” were women wedded to God who performed temple duties and were considered sacral women with ritual powers. As part of her duties, the Devadasis offer sexual services to her patrons, invariably the economically and socially powerful patriarch/s in society. The Devadasis were not a monolithic community; there were caste-based segregations within the Devadasi community which delineated their social positions. Devadasis were drawn from castes lower in the hierarchy (non-Brahmins) and the Scheduled castes (Dalits). To distinguish the two categories, the Devadasis from the non-Brahmin castes were referred to as Kalavantin/Isai Vellalar/ Kalavantulu and those from the Dalit castes were referred to as Jogini/Mathamma; their social and economic status were entirely different. The Devadasis from the non-Brahmin communities per...
... Adi Dravida leaders like MC Raja blamed the Justicites for the low representation of the Adi ... more ... Adi Dravida leaders like MC Raja blamed the Justicites for the low representation of the Adi Dravidas in the Madras council and ... concerns that she had articulated in Kudi Arasu were taken up decades later by Contemporary Dalit feminists like Bama, Sivakami and Sugirtharani. ...
... Drawing a comparison between autobiographies written by Caste Hindus and those written by peo... more ... Drawing a comparison between autobiographies written by Caste Hindus and those written by people from marginalized communities like Dalits, MSS Pandian has rightly observed that caste seldom surfaces in the former while the writings of the latter are suffused with the ...
... She learns from her brother that the elder from the street was carrying the parcel in that ma... more ... She learns from her brother that the elder from the street was carrying the parcel in that manner because he was a parayan, an untouchable, while the Naickers were upper caste men and hence would not touch anything brought by the parayas. ... Nayar, Pramod. 2006. ...
This essay examines the validity of a unified identity of Tamil Scheduled castes in light of thei... more This essay examines the validity of a unified identity of Tamil Scheduled castes in light of their differences regarding caste, history, culture, and politics. Different scheduled castes in Tamil Nadu converged at a certain period to form a unified caste identity. At a later stage, there were fissures or divergences within the community. The fissures within their unified caste movement can be attributed to the fact that their trajectories for emancipation and liberation from the early decades of the twentieth century to the contemporary period are distinct. The dissemination of caste ideologies through printed works enabled the construction of unique caste identities within the scheduled castes. The tracts written by Iyothee Thass Pandithar in his journal Oru Paisa Thamizhan, Elangovan's Arunthathiyar Varalarum Panpadum and Gnanasekaran's Mallariya Samuga Varalaru reiterate the demarcation of distinct caste boundaries among various scheduled castes in Tamil Nadu. This essay analyzes the significance of these works in the construction of distinct scheduled caste identities that defy a unified Dalit identity in Tamil Nadu.
The Madras Anti-Devadasi Act was passed in 1947 with the primary objective of liberating women fr... more The Madras Anti-Devadasi Act was passed in 1947 with the primary objective of liberating women from the oppressive norms of the Devadasi system. Sanctioned by religion, the institutionalization of the Devadasi system within the Hindu community legitimated women from certain caste groups to become ‘servants of god’. Through ritualistic norms, the Devadasis were wedded to God and the caste Hindu patriarchs were authorized to control the sexuality of the Devadasis. Given their vulnerable status in terms of caste, class, and gender, women from the castes lower in hierarchy were forced into the system. Despite the legislative intervention of the Anti-Devdasi Act seven decades ago, there are newspaper reports, which substantiate the continuation of the Devadasi systems in some villages in Tamil Nadu, reiterating the power of caste and sexist ideologies within Hindu society. In contemporary times, the Devadasis are mainly drawn from the Scheduled castes, otherwise referred to as Dalits. Li...
The religiously sanctioned Devadasi system in India exemplifies intersectional oppression of gend... more The religiously sanctioned Devadasi system in India exemplifies intersectional oppression of gender, caste, and sexuality. Historically, Devadasis, or “servants of God,” were women wedded to God who performed temple duties and were considered sacral women with ritual powers. As part of her duties, the Devadasis offer sexual services to her patrons, invariably the economically and socially powerful patriarch/s in society. The Devadasis were not a monolithic community; there were caste-based segregations within the Devadasi community which delineated their social positions. Devadasis were drawn from castes lower in the hierarchy (non-Brahmins) and the Scheduled castes (Dalits). To distinguish the two categories, the Devadasis from the non-Brahmin castes were referred to as Kalavantin/Isai Vellalar/ Kalavantulu and those from the Dalit castes were referred to as Jogini/Mathamma; their social and economic status were entirely different. The Devadasis from the non-Brahmin communities per...
... Adi Dravida leaders like MC Raja blamed the Justicites for the low representation of the Adi ... more ... Adi Dravida leaders like MC Raja blamed the Justicites for the low representation of the Adi Dravidas in the Madras council and ... concerns that she had articulated in Kudi Arasu were taken up decades later by Contemporary Dalit feminists like Bama, Sivakami and Sugirtharani. ...
... Drawing a comparison between autobiographies written by Caste Hindus and those written by peo... more ... Drawing a comparison between autobiographies written by Caste Hindus and those written by people from marginalized communities like Dalits, MSS Pandian has rightly observed that caste seldom surfaces in the former while the writings of the latter are suffused with the ...
... She learns from her brother that the elder from the street was carrying the parcel in that ma... more ... She learns from her brother that the elder from the street was carrying the parcel in that manner because he was a parayan, an untouchable, while the Naickers were upper caste men and hence would not touch anything brought by the parayas. ... Nayar, Pramod. 2006. ...
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