Dalit literature

Dalit literature, or literature about the Dalits, an oppressed Indian caste under the Indian caste system, forms an important and distinct part of Indian literature. Dalit literature emerged in the 1960s, starting with the Marathi language, and soon appeared in Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil languages, through narratives such as poems, short stories, and, most , autobiographies, which stood out due to their stark portrayal of reality and the Dalit political scene.

Dalit literature denounced as petty and false the then prevailing portrayal of life by the Sadashiv Pethi literature which lacked mention of the abject poverty-stricken lifestyle of the Dalits and the utter oppression the Dalits faced, at that time, from the higher castes. It is often compared with African-American literature especially in its depiction of issues of racial segregation and injustice, as seen in slave narratives

History

One of the first Dalit writers was Madara Chennaiah, an 11th-century cobbler-saint who lived during the reign of 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.