Vanmam (Vendetta); Bama, Translated by Malini Seshadri, OUP, Rs. 345.
Vanmam documents the hatred and vengeance among the various Dalit communities, an area too touchy to be addressed and too complex to be grasped. It is sad but true that the graded inequality that sustains caste order is replicated among the Dalits as well. The hierarchy among Dalits
in Tamil Nadu has the following structure as a given: Pallar, Parayar and Arundathiyar. The novel has chosen to deal with the top two castes among the Dalits and not the hierarchically positioned Arundathiyar, for example. The idyllic bonding between the two communities built through cultural events, sports and celebration of festivals turns out to be a mere façade to mask the burning jealousies over socio-economic issues. Unfortunately, conversion to Christianity becomes the key variable in causing this divide. The bloody caste clashes begin with a Hindu Pallar murdering a Christian Parayar. The story ends with the murder of an innocent Parayar, that leads to the dawn of realisation among both the parties about how they have been made pawns in the hands of caste Hindus. Finally a resolution sought in electoral politics.
Regional and caste variations
Azhagarasan’s introduction rightfully points out to the lingering doubt that might rise in the reader about the authorial voice being caught up in the complexities of caste equation that she describes. “This is obvious in her (Bama’s) construct of the subjugated, yet reasonable Parayar, and the cruel, insensitive Pallar,” points out the introduction. In the interview appended to the novel, Bama says, “the events I narrated in Vanmam are limited to a particular village. So, you cannot take it as a generalised statement.” But it is difficult not to get into generalised conclusions. More so in translated texts. What one might sense while reading a text in Tamil with all its regional and caste variations of diction, usage and relationship among the speakers get lost in Englsih.
Gail Omvedt, renowned Dalit studies scholar, has said the following in her review of Vanmam: “In almost every region of India there are two main (Dalit) castes, often at odds.”(Indian Express, New Delhi, August 9, 2008). She actually formulates a whole dichotomous structure among Dalits vis-À-vis religion and movement. Vanmam certainly has laid the ground open for such formulation, which is not only detrimental to Dalit struggles but also too simplistic.
Also, for readers familiar with Bama’s Karukku and Sangati, what is missing here is the powerful presence of gender. The women are in fringes, at a loss to have a say in this madness. What is worse is that they are not sure what to say or do. In fact fights over space for women to relieve themselves and sexual abuses are showered on each other by the women of the respective communities. While answering Azhagarasan’s question on foregrounding “caste among women”, Bama pitches “Dalit patriarchy and caste in feminist movements” as polarised arguments. She goes on to elaborate that “Dalit woman is not even considered as a ‘subject’ and caste was never considered to be a subject for discussion” in feminist circles. But right from early 1990s there have been concerted efforts among feminist thinkers and activists to construct the history of Dalit feminism in India. Sharmila Rege’s Writing Caste, Writing Gender and We also Made History: Women in Ambedkerite Movement by Urmila Pawar and Meenakshi Moon (Tr: Wandana Sonalkar) are recent additions in that effort. In Tamil Nadu, one can confidently say that though casteism may not figure in the discourses among the ranks of women’s movements and NGO activism, Dalit women’s plight and their specific burdens have never been absent. It is unfortunate that a writer of Bama’s calibre should close down the options of discussion. Polarising Dalit feminism and critique of Dalit patriarchy does not help to unpack the complex relationship between gender and caste. In the process what escapes unaffected is an all pervasive masculinity in which Dalit males too have their stake.
Unresolved question
The novel has been translated with meticulous care. Malini Seshadri’s debut in translation is indeed commendable. But the unresolved question of capturing the spirit of the language in abuse/humour continues to remain unaddressed. It will remain unresolved till the translators are willing and ready to bend English to accommodate the raw energy of Dalit tongue. An example would be: “kundile rendu veppu vacha” in Tamil has to be “a couple of thumps on his bum’ and not “give him tight in his ass”! One can list many such illustrations of how the English translation softens the diction used by Dalit writers.
The Introduction and Interview with the author help the text to be read in its context. They make an appeal for an alternate mode of reading and aesthetics. Bama’s texts have never worked on the victimhood of Dalits. The agency of Dalits has been powerfully presented in all her writings. Though Vanmam has entered a highly problematic area, we owe it to her for having dared to open up an embarrassing debate in however preliminary a form.
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