Caste in my living room – 5

Margazhi Special - Caste and Carnatic Music. As a part of the “caste in my living room” series, an acquaintance suggested I wrote on the issue of identity. The first word that came to my mind as I heard that word was, not pride or privilege, but, “art.” Art, some say, is an excess, a …

Caste in my living room – 4

This post is in response to  I AM~~ME’s comment to the last post:I AM~~ME’s comment: This series provokes serious thoughts on the very many beliefs held by the majority. I guess there is no single answer. Just like how you had your moment of realization on meeting a first gen grad, everyone at some point in …

Caste in my living room – 3

In my last post, I had raised a few questions for the readers' consideration. In their attempt to answer the questions, a reader had posed a volley of counter questions - "Don't they do it? The other castes? Don't Dalits ask for reservation in the name of caste? Don't they seek protection in the name of …

Caste in my living room – 2

When I began with the series on casteism, I expected it to go unnoticed, like many other posts in the blog. A handful have read through the post, which is fantastic, and they'd taken the effort to convey their views to me personally, which is even better. I have been speaking on this issue for …

Caste in my living room – 1

As someone born into the “upper caste”, I have been gluttonously oblivious about the travesty of caste hierarchy in India in the first few years of my life. There is guilt and shame for the ignorance, but that is now, after being introduced to the reality. Being young and a female probably added to the …