Sirgapoor Sahil Reddy - Week 10

DALIT READING SUMMARIES
GADAR AND THE DALIT MOVEMENT IN TELANGANA
Sirgapoor Sahil Reddy
20161245

Gummadi Vittal Rao, popularly known as "Gaddar" is a revolutionary poet singer and has emerged as a powerful and popular cultural icon in India. He has established himself as an institution and a household name in Telugu society. The songs of Gaddar go along with the struggles of Indian society, especially of Telugu society. The revolutionary struggles have influenced his ideological position too. From the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, he wrote and performed many songs on martyrs of revolutionary struggles, especially on caste atrocities and the ensuing rebellions.
In Telugu society, the Karamchedu massacre is a landmark in Dalit politics. Six Dalits were killed by upper-caste Kamma landlords in 1985. In response to this, Dalits of Andhra mobilised in large scale in support of the victims of Karamchedu. Gaddar invoked the struggle led by Dalits in Karamchedu in the form of a song in order to campaign and sensitise Dalits. The song "Dalit Pululamma" praises the Dalits of Karamchedu of having fought against the feudal lords like lions. The Karamchedu massacre was followed by Chunduru massacre in which eight Dalits were killed by the upper caste Reddy landlord community in the year 1991. Gaddar sang a song this time to finish the hegemony of Chunduru landlords in "Chunduru Dalitanna". Gaddar believes that the liberation of Dalits is linked with a land struggle. He emphasises the need of united struggle of caste with the struggles of class, his songs attacked the zamindar community of Telangana, as he believed they were the reason for the existence of social taboos like untouchability and social discrimination. He mentions how all the hard work in the fields is done by the Dalits but all the gains are taken up by the zamindars. Most of Gadar’s songs are an attack on the zamindar community of united Andhra Pradesh.


Link to the song - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQnWXPK5GwM

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