June 2009 FEMINISM IN THE BUD

Whenever one talks about women writing, there are certain preconceived notions that tends to blind one’s mind. It is only recently, only about half a century ago that women have been accepted as writers. The pen was supposed to be symbolic of patriarchal power and hold. However in a country where they say, "feminism lies only in the textbooks," it is important to note the little slippages and gaps through which women did make their voice heard more than a century ago.

One such person was Savitribai Phule. People would remember having heard her name in history text books, which mentions her as being the first person to start a rebellion for the education of the girl child in Maharashtra.

The painstakingly-put endeavor that is volume of Women Writing in India- 1 by Susie Tharu and K Lalita brings to the hilt the voices of women which were long forgotten or buried, at times in family memorabilia.

There’s a particular letter in this edition of the book, which is a mirror image of Savitribai’s innate nature, through which we see feminist traces. The word feminism here implies a strong sense of self assertion. Given below is the excerpt of the greeting she uses for her husband. (The letter is translated from Marathi to English).

To My Lord Jotiba, Who Is The Image of Truth,
Many humble greetings from Savitri.

If we were to place this letter in the historical context of when it was written, it was a time when India was still in the pre-independence era and women had to address their husbands as Lord. If we have to go further analysing this letter- we would gauge that it is incredible in the sense that a woman’s mindset in even such imposing circumstances sought freedom. Savitribai describes, in the letter, an incident where her brother says that she and her husband were rightly excommunicated from the society, because being Brahmins they had helped mangs and mahars ,( the community referred to as “the untouchables”, mainly as it was the community that looked after the sanitation of the village).

It is remarkable to note what Savitribai had to say on this- she logically remarks that he feeds animals like cows and goats, and also feeds poisonous snakes on the festive day of Nagpanchami. She also adds that when Brahmins are in their holy attire, they consider people like her brother, who is also of the same caste to be impure. She says that learning gives the person the power to think, which the mangs and mahars have been long denied, which is the sole reason for their ignorance.

Savitribai then states the following sentences, which in many ways, is path breaking and much ahead of the time she’s speaking in.

“Let me assure you that my husband does not merely chant God’s name and do pilgrimages like you ......................... ................... He is doing God’s own work.
And I help him in that. It’s such a pleasant task that I feel immeasurably happy.. ............................................................................. Besides, it also demonstrates the horizons to which a human being can reach out.”

Through this, we understand the deep sense of commitment Savitribai had for her work. Her mother, she adds, is more accepting and has the last word- as she says that Goddess Saraswati (of prosperity and education) is speaking through the mouth of her daughter. Lastly, Savitribai ends the letter by firmly requesting her husband to ignore the comments of several ‘idiots’ who try to poison people against his work. Thus, this is an insightful rediscovery of the voice of a woman of one generation, trying to avoid the ideological constraints from affecting her mind.

The inexhaustible book Women’s Writing in India has been an incredible experience- both, for readers as well as writers. As the Studies in History rightly points out, “The selections demonstrate the need to question one’s assumptions about what is literature and what is great literature.” Even though most of these women are unknown to the canonical world - they sure have a strong voice of their own, which is equally radical in its own ways.

MAY 2009 THE CULTURAL PLETHORA: SANGAM LITERATURE

	Indian literature has a wide spectrum, spanning through millennia. Indian literature is one of the oldest literatures. The literature created in India is descriptive and rich in tradition and bears common and typical tendencies of writing. The beginnings of literature in India were through the oral forms such as that of storytelling, lullabies, folk songs and even limericks.

The zenith of Tamil literature is unarguably the Sangam Literature. The word Sangam means "confluence" hence the conclusive meaning Literary confluence. The "Sangams" were huge poetic assemblies organised literati under royal patrons.

If we were to talk about Sangam literature per se, it is only lately in the nineteenth century that it has been brought to light again by some research scholars. Sangam literature is the extension of literature in Tamil, which was often rightly regarded as the ‘golden era’ of literary work. It has said to have its beginnings through the third century AD till the third century BC.

Sangam literature gives an in-depth insight into the lives of the people of its time. The literature was rich with poems describing emotions such as pain, love, angst, jealousy, betrayal, bravery with images from everyday lives. The word Sangam, when literally translated means academy. The literature holds a division into roughly three parts, by scholars, to make it simpler to fathom, as Sangam literature spans for almost across a period of thousand years. The first two parts of Sangam literature are almost dissolved into oblivion, whereas the third one has been recovered, and has also influenced the life of late nineteenth and early twentieth people in Tamil Nadu

Before the birth of stones and sand,
Brave Tamil man was born...

Many of the poems were heroic in nature and celebrated the culture of the Tamil clan. They include in themselves a strong connect to the community, thus having a strong sense of brotherhood. The wisdom in these poems is for everyone and in many senses, universal. It glorified the values of unity, strength, valor and bravery. Many of the poems written during this time even celebrated their kings, soldiers and the brave army, which protected them. If we were to historicize the time when Sangam literature was being written, war was considered sacred, because it symbolised directly attacking your enemy. Many of these themes sonorously echo in the literature produced during that period.

The man of the village by the ponds
where the carp seize the ripe fruit of the
mango trees that line the fields.
In our land he is high and mighty; but in theirs...

The lines of this poem belonging to the era of Sangam literature are translated into English, rather imperfectly. But the stress here shouldn't’t be on the translation. Rather the theme of the poem would be a more apt thing to speak of. In this poem, the one theme that runs throughout the verses is that of jealousy and passionate love. The speaker in this poem is a village courtesan. She seems to be saying that the man of the village comes to her only for her beauty, but actually belongs to his wife.

Like a puppet, a reflection in a mirror,
He does all he is asked, for the mother of
his son

This entire poem presents a love trilogy, where the husband visits the courtesan for his gratification and personal needs. At the end of the day, he is a mere ‘puppet’ as the courtesan describes, in the hands of ‘the mother of his son’. The poem runs through emotional decadences of jealousy, love, passion, a latent sense of anger and also hurt. The common theme binding this all is love. Such poems were not uncommon during the era of Sangam Literature.

The period when Sangam literature was being produced was a time when a lot of religious verse was being written. For instance, there is a poem written about Lord Murugan, Lord Ganesha's brother, and one of his wives Valli. She was the daughter of a mountaineer, and the mountains form the backdrop for their scene of being united at midnight. The weather is cold and there is a shrill in the air, however the lovers are beautifully engulfed in each other’s armor. This is a typical Tamil poem of this era because it describes Lord Murugan, the peacock he sits on and also, the dear forest of Tamil Nadu, all in minute detail.

the jewellery they wore, the occupations (like agriculture, animal husbandry) that they engaged in, and everything connected with their everyday life.

Although not many details are available of the beautiful and charismatic era of Sangam literature, it cannot be denied that it was a plethora of one of the richest culture being produced in verse. It is an insightful peek into the lives of a ethnic group belonging to the south of India (mainly Tamilians as called today). Sangam literature is great because of its detailed approach, embellished language and most of all, the fertile tradition of literature it produced.

JANUARY 2009 CAPTIVE HOLD OF MAHAPATRA

Indians have been writing in English since about the 1820. The strata of same have been referred to in many names Indo-Anglican, Anglo-Indian, India-English and so on. The British rule in India had its many effects as evident even today in all forms of Indian writing. Pre modern poets like Sarojini Naidu were severly criticised for the western influences in their poetry and the images they conjured in verse were said to be far from being 'Indian' If we talk about post Independence poetry, there is one important distinction to make. The term 'post' can essentially mean two things; a reaction, or a continuation. With there being considerable debate on the same, it would be interesting to take a page out of Oriya literature to study poet Jayanta Mahapatra.

Most of Mahapatra's poems exude a deep sense of regionalism, with he himself confessing that his 'origins lie with the lower middle classes'. Mahapatra's work has a lot of obscure imagery, sometimes difficult to fathom to an average reader. His memories of the narrow rural community are visible in his poems as well. Most of Mahapatra's poems concentrate on the theme of having to wake up and go through the sordid process of living. His themes cannot be called melancholic although there is a straightforward element of emotionless tone in them.

For instance, in his much acclaimed poem Hunger, the last stanza reads

I heard him say: my daughter, she's just turned fifteen....
Feel her. I'll be back soon, your bus leaves at nine.
The sky fell on me, and a father's exhausted wile.
Long and lean, her years were cold as rubber.
She opened her wormy legs wide. I felt the hunger there,
the other one, the fish slithering, turning inside.

The sexual imagery in this verse is as difficult to ignore as the apparent rootlessness and isolation in human relationships. The noted fact that one half of the world is eating because the other half is hungry enough to give is clearly portrayed through the images he conjures. The poem also gives a subtle irony, the father and daughter have no bond of attachment except for hunger. Both are willing to sacrifice an element or principle so that they can eat to live.

Mahapatra's poems also capture a sense of the beauty of nature. His poem The Captive Air of Chandipur-on-Sea describes in detail and abundance the lives of fishermen and perhaps a detailed philosophy of life tucked away in it.

...who are you,
occupant of the silent sigh of the conch?

His work is a constant conflict between reaching out into some dichotomy or another. Mahapatra trusts his own instincts and while he writes verse, he takes us back to, as if it were another world where different images contrive and battle with themselves.

His rather short poem Of the love is rather interesting.

I pity myself in another’s guise…

The idea of an image being etched into the footprints of time, and the themes which give the feeling of being caught up in two world’s faces itself with deep meaning.

Mahapatra is one of the modern poets whose name does not feature in Indian writing in English as much as Arun Kolatkar or Dilip Chitre, but he has in himself, an individuality and obscurity in his poems that make them as compelling as those of his contemporaries. 

DECEMBER 2008 THEN AND NOW

There is a saying that goes, “When newspapers fail, don’t blame journalism.” This holds true for most supplements that provide us news in the present era. The language of newspapers has gone through a metamorphosis that has its direct impact on the content it generates. Tom peeping journalism is everywhere, and advertisements garner the most revenue for newspapers with stories being chopped aside. Post independence, there was an upheaval of sorts in the content one saw in newspapers, with it being very patriotic and inspiring for the youth.

A theory on popular culture reinstates the fact that newspapers merely do not ‘report’ facts but construct them as well. As a part of business, newspapers support their own political parties, mostly much to the dismay of the reporters who want to do stories stating facts. Also, many a times we see news being ‘sensationalised’. There is a clearly visible battle that goes on between what takes the priority to be the top news or the front page news. For instance, if there is a news item on a youth being murdered in a slum and a top notch celebrity getting married, the latter hogs the limelight.

people. Newspapers these days have a lot of issues, for instance, the plethora of sting operations or censorship issues. Ironically, after exploitation of the freedom of speech and expression, it is the Press is no longer free.

On a positive note, with globalisation- a term oft used but the meanings differs contextually, there has been an exchange of sorts. Surprisingly, a newspaper reflects strongly our cultural ideologies and idiosyncrasies; of what we enjoy reading or we desist. The newspaper is now big, if not better and there is a wide scope of entertainment being provided with colourful teasers and articles. The only thing that suffers most of the times is content or hard news.

We now have newspapers that openly discuss matters about sex, which was earlier a taboo. Young people now have well-informed articles to deal with their doubts through newspapers, if not school textbooks.

Plato’s absolute truth does not exist hence newspaper could at least give us the various dimensions. There are various elements and shades of an issue, and it is vital for newspapers to keep them into account too. It is only through sensitivity of language and an innate understanding of human psychology that a newspaper will reach the masses and change them for better.