MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD/STORY II

                    WE TOO ARE HUMAN BEINGS

“Bama” is the poem name of Tamil Dalit woman from a Roman Catholic family. She has published three main works: an autobiography, ‘Karukku, ’Sangati,’ 1994; and a collection of short stories, ‘ Kissumbukkaaran’ 1996. The following extract has been taken from double-edged swords. By a felicitous pun, the Tamil word ‘Karukku,’ containing the word ‘Karu’ embryo or seed, also means freshness, newness.

Bama till the age of eight had not heard of the word ‘untouchability’. Nevertheless, certain small events of her life had made her feel that she was an untouchable.

The author got to see, feel and experience untouchability while still very young.

v Daily routine of the author

Although the distance between the author's school and home was a barely ten minute walk but quite conveniently she would take somewhere from half an hour to and hour and a half. Leisurely she would walls the distance taking in whatever came her way. As a little girl she would be interested in all the big and small things happening on route. She would be interested in

·       The performing monkey, the snake possessed by the snake charmer.

·       A cyclist pedaling continuously for days and the people pinning rupees onto his shirt egging him on.

·       The Maariyaata temple with its huge bell, the Pongal offerings.

·       Gandhi's statue

·       Shops, streetlights, stalls etc.

·       Political campaigns with their fiery speeches.

·       Street play, puppet show, magic show.

·       Fruits hanging on trees.

·       Coffee clubs in the market place

v Humorous sight leaves deep impression

·       Landlord seated on a stone ledge seeing farm labourers threshing. The peasants were hard at work as they drove their cattle round and round to tread out the grain from the straw.

·       An elderly man came along carrying a small packet with some eatables in it. He held it by the string, so that his hands would not touch the packet. He bowed low and offered the packet with both his hands.

v Author's Description: Realisation dawns

·       The author shared what she thought were comic details of the episode with her elder brother.

·       Annan, the brother, told her that the landlord was an upper caste and the worker, an untouchable was not supposed to touch the contents of the packet or even the packet lest it should be polluted.

·       Now the anecdote did not seem funny at all, she felt provoked and angry at why those people thought so much of themselves simply because they had put together some money. She felt that as human beings they too had self-respect and should not rum such petty errands for these people but only work for them and get wages in return.

The narrator's elder brother who was home for the holidays told her that they would have to work hard for their dignity and respect as they were born in such a community that these things did not come easily for them. Struggle, hard work and education would earn them dignity. He told her to study with care and to learn all that she could. His advice left a deep impact on her mind. She studied hard as her elder brother had urged, stood first in her class and thus made many friends and finally rose to become, a writer.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS TO BE UPDATED SOON.

 

 

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