Casting light on the desperate plight of ‘untouchables’ among untouchables in Kerala

THRISSUR: Kannada play ‘Daklakatha Devikavya’, presented at the International Theatre Festival of Kerala (ITFoK), provided a sharp insight into the problem of caste discrimination in India. The play is centered on Dakla community, considered to be ‘untouchables’ among the untouchables.

The play, directed by Lakshmana K P, is based on an epic poem with the same name and authored by K B Siddaiah, who was the founder of the anti-caste movement Dalit Sangarsh Samithi (DSS). He has adopted an oral myth.

“The poetry was set in a very regional context and even Kannadigas were finding it difficult to decodify it. I didn’t have the theatre language to express it. We all worked together and it is a collective work of all of us, including the actors and other supporting crew,” said Lakshmana.

“I also wanted to work with two major music instruments called Arai and Thamtai in the play as they had immense significance in Kannada culture. They were always present in Karnataka but were never used in contemporary theatre as they were played by an untouchable community,” he said.

The group members said the play marks a special moment in Karnataka’s theatre history. “The work comes out of a particular context, which did not provide the access to Dalits though theatre and Dalit movements are synonymous in some ways. Performance and literature have been kind of integral to the Dalit movements but they may not have had the access to the kind of stages they may have now,” said Mohit V Kaycee, who did the dramaturgy for the play.

Though the play relies on myths and rituals, they are interpreted differently. For instance, menstrual blood is worshipped in the play as a symbol of fertility.

Courtesy : TOI

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