CHENNAI, October 30, 2011
Themes of freedom, justice and identity explored at fest
Ramya Kannan
Chennai leg of 'Lit for Life 2011' kicks off
Does the struggle to affirm one's humanity through literature
facilitate healing? Is the travel writer bothered by having to edit
out the dull portions? And, do writers hold back what they want to say
for fear of persecution? These and a lot more questions livened up the
proceedings of the morning session of the Chennai leg of 'Lit for Life
2011'. The Hindu's first literary festival began on Saturday and will
conclude with a grand award ceremony on Sunday evening when The Hindu
Best Fiction Prize 2011 will be awarded.
An animated audience was quite unwilling to bring the session on 'Is
writing a healing?' to a close, and it might have well eaten into
lunch but for moderator Siddharth Varadarajan, Editor, The Hindu,
putting his foot down. A lively discussion, peppered with questions -
controversial, provocative, and introspective - had Dalit writers Bama
and P.Sivakami, and academic Susie Tharu in conversation.
In India, caste follows you wherever you go, even after death, Ms.
Bama said. "When we segregate people as 'high' and 'low', we inflict
pain on one section of society… There is the humiliation of being in
someone's power. When you write does it ease that pain?" It is a
step-by-step process, she went on to explain. The first stage is to
accept the pain, then examine the causes for the pain, and finally,
when one writes, one realises the need to come out of the victim's
role and turn militant against the oppressors, she added. Clearly, for
her, when one writes, there is a possibility of healing to a certain
extent – for the writer, and to some extent, for even the victim.
Words are double-edged, Ms. Sivakami, Tamil Nadu's first Dalit woman
IAS officer who later took up voluntary retirement, said. They can
heal the victim, and punish the guilty. Dalit authors write as
witnesses of atrocious cruelties constantly perpetrated on members of
their community. "That is why it is impossible [for writers] to leave
Dalit society behind. The atrocities are like seasonal rains, they
keep happening," she added.
Ms. Tharu provided a perspective that sought to examine both Dalit and
feminist writing from the perspective of how writers respond to their
conditions through a state of non-resolution. Anger at one's own
position or condition is absolutely essential for the writer, whether
feminist or Dalit, she added. The writer tackles issues that are most
personal and most important to her or him, she said in response to a
question on whether Dalit writers would move on to writing about
'other issues'.
The morning sessions began with Ziya Us Salam who heads The Hindu's
features section in Delhi, engaging Mohammed Hanif, Pakistani writer,
and author of Our Lady of Alice Bhatti, in a conversation on topics
ranging from diasporic writing, identity, censorship and influences
and inspiration. Geeta Doctor, journalist, introduced the writers.
"The writer is a citizen first, he lives somewhere," Mr. Hanif said,
answering a question on his association with his home. Having lived
abroad, he made the choice to come back home and make a life there. As
rooted as the book is in a nation, Alice Bhatti, for instance, is
about the life of a woman from a particular city and community.
"However, people tend to pick up the novel and expect it to tell them
every thing about Pakistan." But yes, the reader has the freedom to
interpret the novel after it has been written, he added. Just as a
writer must have the freedom to write without censorship. Mr. Hanif
claimed he never held back anything he wanted to say in a book.
Humorously, he added, to thunderous applause, that as "most people in
Pakistan cannot read; those who can, do not read, and the type of
people who do read my books can laugh at themselves."
'Destination Detectives' had Rahul Bhattacharya, author of The Sly
Company of People who Care, in conversation with Latha Anantharaman, a
travel writer, and translator, as Ranvir Shah, cultural activist,
stayed on to moderate. Once one has left home, he or she becomes an
outsider, and the state of not being at home produces a sense of
irritation that every writer needs, Ms. Anantharaman explained.
Travelling also changes the writer's perception of the place, Mr.
Bhattacharya said, elaborating on how his stay in Guyana took him on a
journey into indentured labour, slavery and the anxiety of
dislocation. After a period of time, however, he added, you start to
feel like an insider. He also read a passage from his book, complete
with the Guyanian creole accent.
Most writers do not have the time to write about their experience
while living it, and therefore when one writes, there is automatic
editing. The writer tends to leave out the dull bits, and tries to
make it interesting for the reader, Ms. Anantharaman said. While every
writer wants to keep it honest, there are constant acts of omission.
On the other hand, Mr. Bhattacharya said the thing with writing a
first-person account gets "people thinking that all those things in
the book happened to you."
------------------------------------
----
INFORMATION OVERLOAD?
Get all ZESTCaste mails sent out in a span of 24 hours in a single mail. Subscribe to the daily digest version by sending a blank mail to ZESTMedia-digest@yahoogroups.com, OR, if you have a Yahoo! Id, change your settings at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/join/
PARTICIPATE:-
On this list you can share caste news, discuss caste issues and network with like-minded anti-caste people from across India and the world. Just write to zestcaste@yahoogroups.com
TELL FRIENDS TO SIGN UP:-
If you got this mail as a forward, subscribe to ZESTCaste by sending a blank mail to ZESTCaste-subscribe@yahoogroups.com OR, if you have a Yahoo! ID, by visiting http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join/
Also have a look at our sister list, ZESTMedia: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
ZESTCaste-digest@yahoogroups.com
ZESTCaste-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
ZESTCaste-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
