Growing up untouchable in India : a dalit autobiography / Vasant Moon ; translated from the Marathi by Gail Omvedt ; with an introduction by Eleanor Zelliot.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Moon, Vasant.

Contributor:

Omvedt, Gail

Series:

Asian voices

Standardized Title:

Vastī. English

Language:

English

Hindi

Subjects (All):

Dalits--India.

Dalits.

India.

India--Scheduled tribes.

Scheduled tribes in India.

People with social disabilities--India.

People with social disabilities.

Moon, Vasant--Childhood and youth.

Local Subjects:

Moon, Vasant--Childhood and youth.

Genre:

Autobiographies.

Physical Description:

xviii, 203 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, [2001]

Summary:

There is much in Vasant Moon's story of his vasti, his childhood neighborhood in India, that would probably be true of any ghetto anywhere in the world. There is hunger and deprivation, to be sure, but also a sense of community, an easy acceptance of petty crime and violence, the saving grace of sports and organized activities led by caring adults, the inexplicable cruelty and unexpected generosity, and escape through education. But there is much here that is peculiarly and vividly Indian as well. Primary among these is the factor of caste, a hierarchical system unrelated to race but based on ancient principles of hereditary pollution and purity, with Brahmans the purest and Untouchables the most polluted. Second is the presence of a hero so important he is described as a "wave," and surely no despised group has ever had a leader as meaningful as Dr. B. R. (Babasaheb) Ambedkar was and remains for India's awakened and ambitious Dalits. Third is nature, with Moon's compelling descriptions of Nagpur's heat and the vivid joy brought by the monsoon. Indeed, every tree, every fruit, every nook and cranny of the world in and around the vasti plays an important part in his story. Vasant Moon's Growing Up Untouchable in India, the first Dalit autobiography to be published in English, is a moving and eloquent testament to a uniquely Indian life as well as to the universal human spirit.

Contents:

1 The Neighborhood 1

2 Fearless 10

3 Callousness and Clouds 18

4 Heat and Rain 24

5 Dev Master's Curse Fails 33

6 Religious Hymns 39

7 Shooting Star 46

8 Chickpeas and Parched Rice 51

9 The Unconquered 61

10 Parade of Lions and Tigers 64

11 Foreshadowing 69

12 Holy Victory 73

13 Robust and Rollicking 78

14 Sports and Study 83

15 Politics and Pigeons 89

16 Climax 93

17 Wrath 102

18 Cultural Transformation 107

19 An Unspoiled Picture 118

20 The Welfare of the World 124

21 For What? For Books! 129

22 I Begin to Write 135

23 The End of Omar Khayyam 138

24 Rising Moon 142

25 The Vows of Religion 149

26 Falling Star 157

27 Tying the Knot 163

28 The Spinning Top 169.

Notes:

Includes bibliographic references (pages 193-194) and index.

ISBN:

0742508803

0742508811

OCLC:

43960953