KAKAPEE
Self-Actualization That Changed the Genes of a Crow's Shit
A Review
Dr. Jilukara Srinivas
Dravidian University
Andhra Pradesh
This is a novel with a very unusual name. Kaka means Crow. Pee means Shit. The name of the novel is Crow's Shit. But this is the name of the hero of the novel. The author is striking directly at the Hindu Law Code in Manusmriti that officially bans the use of good sounding names for Dalits, the untouchable people of India. The storyline of the novel has an amazing touch of realism. Though it is written in fiction style it gives a clear picture of what is happening in India. It is a fiction based on the reality of India. Therefore, every Dalit reader of the novel is bound feel that it is about himself/herself. They will try to find out if the author knows them personally and wonder if he is writing about them. Those who do not know about the situation of the untouchable people of India will have a festival of information reading this novel. The beauty of the novel is its character creation. Every character presents someone or other whom the reader has met in his/her life. There is very much of realism in character creation. Occasionally it becomes difficult to believe that is a fiction.
The connections cannot be easily ignored. The author is from an unseeable community in India. The hero of the novel is also from an unseeable community. As one reads about Publish America in Website it says that at least the first four novels of an author reflect his/her personal life. This inevitability seems to have a strong reflection in KAKAPEE. The author is known well in India in many circles. His revolutionary flavour runs through the whole narration of the story.
An unseeable Dalit born in a family living below poverty line and of total illiterate parents works hard to rise in life that is not commonly possible for many Dalits. But the genius of the author comes out clearly when he converts the horrible experience of the hero, being named at a tender age as KAKAPEE, into an opportunity, a capital investment to reap rich harvest. There is a lesson for all Dalits here. Instead of crying over such unfortunate situations created by the caste system in India and instead of blaming others always, the hero turns to himself, builds his interiority and creates a saga of success standing on spirituality.
The author is at pains to explain in an interesting fashion through many chapters that conversion to Christianity helps the Dalits marginally to educate themselves but nothing beyond. Even within Christianity there is untouchability and horrible levels of ill treatment of the Dalits. This novel is bound to create some controversy here. Despite his aversion to conversion as a way of Dalit liberation the personal admiration of the author as an ardent admirer Jesus Christ comes out in many pages. We are not sure if the author does this intentionally or it spills out unintentionally. The courage of the author to take on Hinduism and Christianity on par has been carved out in a highly admirable fashion through the many pages of the novel. The baptism into Marxism through Christianity is yet again a very non-conventional path that the author takes. Reduced to burning ashes through this arduous journey the hero rises like the Phoenix to become a veritable symbol of the liberation of the Dalit people.
Just as the hero becomes an atheist and gives up faith in all gods and religions, enters the heroin in his life with similar vision and revolutionary flavour. The entry of the heroine has been brought out in remarkable style. From the time of her entry till the end of the novel it is difficult to say who is occupying the centre stage of the novel. She does not play a second fiddle to the hero. She does not dominate over him. The character creation of the heroine is amazingly remarkable. But in this amazing interpolation realism has been maintained very well.
But there is another 'out of the world' interpolation. Very few authors can do this with such ease as M C Raj does. In a highly fictional style he brings out the scene of a 'upper' house discussing rationally about the hero and a 'lower' house waiting emotionally for the advent of their liberator. Both houses know the hero very well. While the upper house condemns him as an atheist the lower house adores the shadow of the hero and heroine as the images of their gods. While the upper house clamours for severe punishment for the hero for misguiding the Dalits the lower house demands that he showed them the way and pledges to walk in the path that he will show. These contrasts strike an emotional cord in the reader. The philosopher in the author comes out through the novel. This is an interesting combination that he is making. The plunging into the womb of Mother Earth, the merging with the ancestors, the entropy of the cosmic waves, the regeneration of energy waves, the butterfly, the procession of women, the ultimate revolution, all these are typical of the author coming out in a very novel fashion. Indeed it is a novel of M C Raj.
Such a good novel published by Publish America should have avoided the many spelling mistakes that are glaring in some pages. It should be made available in India.Hyderabad Events
Release of KAKAPEE, The Novel
Dr. Jilukara Srinivas and his friends in the Dravidian University decided to formally release KAKAPEE, the novel written by M C Raj. The releasing function took place on 13 December 2009 in Hyderabad at the Sundarayya Vignan Kendra. It was nice to see the enthusiasm of the young professors who spent their own money to organize the functions. There were two honoured guests in the releasing function apart from many speakers.
Mr. Satyanarayana who is an elected member of the Parliament and a protoganist of Telengana came a little late and therefore, the book was released by Mr. R. Pravin Kumar IPS, the Deputy Inspector General of Police. In his speech he stressed on the need for developing reading habits instead of wasting our life in mobile phones and sms messages. He took the book of M C Raj in his hand and pointing out to the fact that there was going to be an award for him and Jyothi that evening in the same city he requested the audience to consider the Books of Raj and Jyothi as the Bible of the Dalit people. He had in his mind the earlier books of M C Raj that were introduced to the audience by Dr. Jilukara Srinivas.
Mr Sathyanarayana was full of enthusiasm about the creation of Telengana, a new State in India just a few days ago. He contained himself to focus his attention on the book. He said a new horizon of Dalit liberation has been opened with the writings of Raj and Jyothi. Both of them have asked for a full set of the books.
Dr. Jilukara Srinivas gave a well read and written review of the Novel, KAKAPEE. It was a real treat to the audience. It was in Telugu. As soon as he sends it in English we shall dash it off to you. He also described all the other books of Raj and Jyothi and pointed out that a Dalit revolution in Tumkur was made possible by these two because of their learning attitude from the people, especially from Dalit women in the villages.
The Award Function
In the evening of the same day there was an award function organized by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar International Mission. Dalit Dignitaries from many other countries had come. It is a great honour for Jyothi and Raj to be selected as the main literary award winners for their book DYCHE, The Dalit Psyche. Dr. Raju Kamble, a Dalit NRI from the US said that he went through the whole book personally and liked it immensely for the scientific approach of the book and for the writing style. This is for the first time that a book on Dalit Psychology has been brought out as a huge volume of 1100 pages. The Award consists of a beautiful Memento and cash prize of Rs.25,000/-
Knowing Jyothi and Raj well, some friends applied and sent necessary information to the US recommending that the Literary Award for 2008 be given to the authors of DYCHE.
When Jyothi said in her response that she considers this award as a direct blessing of Babasaheb Ambedkar the clapping of hands seemed to rip open the roof of the Hall. It was a houseful gathering in a huge auditorium. Many friends of REDS in Hyderabad had come personally for the Award function.
All of us in REDS and the Dalit Panchayat Movement are very happy about the recognition given to these two leaders. We had set up huge banners in the city of Tumkur congratulating both of them for their historic contribution to Dalit liberation even at the cost of their life and dignity. REDS is proud of her Founders, our Appaji and Ammaji
The TEAM REDS Dalit Panchayat Movement
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Mrs. Jyothiraj
Director
Rural Education for Development Society
REDS Road, Shanthinagar
Tumkur 572102, Karnataka, India
Ph: ++91-816-2277026
Fax: ++91-816-2272515
Mobile: ++91-9880184667
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Palash Biswas
Pl Read:
http://nandigramunited-banga.blogspot.com/
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