“I am a Dalit. How are you?” A troubling video about the fate of Dalits in India brought to us by Shivam Vij. [Via Neha Viswanathan] Yahoo! Time Capsule. Hurry you have only until November 8 to contribute to this interesting project that will be host…
posts on this topic later, especially about my ancestral town of Nagpur, but in the meanwhile, this video is worth watching to get a glimpse of the treatment of Dalits in contemporary times. (Link by way of Ashvin’s SepiaMutiny comment linking to Shivam Vij’s site)
Even those of us elite who are aware that life for dalits is nothing to write home about have little or no idea of the actual reality. Thanks for administering a little of this badly need dose of reality. More is needed.
I was moved to tears. With activist work like this, I hope the rich become poorer, and the poor richer.
Truly we are not human, we Indians. We Brahmins. We crush their will to live, systematically to steal their energy and life-force. Like vampires. Or bloodscukers.
This video highlights the discrimination most Indians are aware of but feign ignorance or sweep under the carpet. This is the reality and the world must come to know of it and take the govt and people to task. Its the indian middle class in the towns and villages that bully the dalit people. Its a sadistic race.
Comment by Paddy Kneebone — October 16, 2006 @ 12:10 pm
This is the real India…not mumbai..not delhi…Its makes me feel sick that I live in a country where people are treated worse then animals and then when govt proposes some actions like reservations qe jump on thier throats…but then when govt has done almost nothing in the field of Primary education( free primary education is not a fundamental right in Indian constitution) for them its been 60 years…reserving fifty % seats for them in IIMs ans IITs …do you think these people will ever even reach or better ever hear of these institutes…I dont think so…Ministers like Mr Arjun Singh is only lookin at griding his axe and has no good interest at heart…I hope that people realise that these are own brothers and sisters..imagine if one were to treat us differently…discriminate and make us feel like lesser human beings…
On must always remember…what we would not like somebody to us we must never to someone else
Just for the record, the reservations proposed by Arjun Singh are for OBCs. The video is about Dalits and reservation does exist for them. Let us not mix dalit and OBC stories…just to keep the context clear.
Having said that, you are spot on when you these people will not even hear about IITs or IIMs and nor will thier kids. The Govt. has failed miserably in helping the Dalits.
Yes Education is a solution but not the only solution. It is a part of the bigger solution. Sanitation in India is pathetic. The world has gone way ahead and we still use these dehumanizing processes. Why? Because labour is cheap and the society as a whole treats these people as filth of the society.
As the video says, manual scavenging was abolished but it is still there in many parts of India. I think there are couple of things lacking. First there is no awareness among the dalits about the law and different programmes run by GOI. Second, these communities are not organized. They need to get organized. That will give them the power to get the laws implemented, spread the awareness and eventually make the communities aware of IITs and IIMs eventually.
Take an example of the cities(especially big cities like Delhi, Kanpur, Chandigarh), most of the domestic workers now have taken a stand that will clean the house but will not clean the toilets. And you can see that most people clean their toilet themselves. No one in the city can FORCE the domestic workers to do that if they don’t want to. In cities these are organized to an extent that they have a voice and if they wish they can boycott a particular house. That is the power of getting organized.
The Dalits have gotten organized but certain communities within the dalits are still neglected. Bhangis are the worst affected. There needs to be a bhangi organization that will raise their voice and show the plight of the bhangis to the world and do something about them.
dear prerna,
first the question of obc reservation has much to do with the social fabrics of the society. obc makes a major part of our population. if some obc castes have come up the economic ladder it cannot be generalised to all. why r u joining obc reservation with this issue.
the condition of dalits is pathetic. let me remind u that there r several obc castes which live like slaves on this earth.
labour is cheap and the society as a whole treats these people as filth of the society”. but let me remind u that labour is cheap not because of abudance of labour but it is because of the hierarchisation and dehumanisation of labour in indian society. the low castes live in acute poverty, there r much dependents and earning sources are limited and all dirty works get low wages as an rule.
for me reservation is a proces of democratisation and representation . it is also about equality and equity. it is not a revenge against uppper castes so called. resrvation is one of the solutions of equity building not a concrete solution. in a long run we hav eto decide how we can integrate thse people in the society which have been excluded for thousand s of years. you may get sympathy of this video but still some old prejudices are left within us which promote us from making such points. if u r really interested in upliftmwnt of these people then u have to support landreforms, reservation 9in private sector as well as public sector, eeucation to all ………etcetc
the real problems of this coujtry is caste based division and it is visible in all the spheres of the society like occupational, social, educational, economic, religious, political etc etc
Any way i would like to support reservation till discrimiation towrds dalits gets normal.
At least a man can’t dare to say a sweeper cast with bad class because his boss himself belongs to swwper class. This discrimination was due to misconception that Brahmins can only understand good things and sweepers can’t do nothing better then doing lower jobs so Brahmins are superior, now slowly-slowly SC-ST students are scoring well and SC-ST employes are also performing well so Upper class people now can’t say that these people can’t do anything so discriminate them.
But Its Sad ! Even today everywhere upper-caste people or students think that lower-class students can’t perform well or they are not intelligent so they need reservation.
—This is just example of illogical mentallity because every generation is producing new children who god/nature discriminate while putting intelligence into their mind ? Only answer is all Dalit don’t get opportunity to apply for every competition so in less quantity quality has to be low. But I tell you, things are improving.
News of 1000s no. of conversion to buddhism is evidence that dalits wat get rid of the cast-discrimination. I hope people and government will be doing something to get rid of this social-evil in India.
Its the 4-varna system that killed the dreams and hopes of a part of society for generations together. In a few areas of country it might look as if we left this behind but unfortunately a major part of country still remains infected by descrimination. Its people who introduced and practiced it so harshly and still continuing. So its them who need working to get rid of it.
Its every individual who first needs to remove these thoughts from their minds completely and then spread the word to educate those around. If Govt supports it with strict implementation of relevant laws then hopefully, a couple of generations down, India will have a descrimination free dawn.
hi, this is really sad to see, but we cant blame the government for this its the brahmins who are in the post dont want to force the law, some of the above people have written to separate OBC’s issuses and SC’s issues apart… i have a question for them WILL YOU PEOPLE STOP DICSRIMINATING AGAINST CRIMES???? A CRIME IS A CRIME….
[...] I came across this video through Shivam’s blog and it is highlights the discrimination that Dalits have to go through every day in their lives and going through such a life make them convert themselves to Buddhism and other religions. If converting themselves to some other religion gets their pride back and they are given rights equal to others then this is a viable option, I don’t find anything wrong in this. [...]
HI,
This indeed, should be brought into consideration of government. People should also payback to society by supporting their own people who have been subject of prejudices,& miseries because of thier very work which had been assigned to them, as only source of living, by bramanical social order.
According me ,this bramanical social order should be severly condemned.
Comment by Sachindra — October 19, 2006 @ 11:54 am
we all knew there were instances of this, but in 2006?? how could the people be happy when their own is treated this way? such things dont happen anywhere else in this world, not even in darkest africa. i guess this is darkest india.
hello brother…
when i saw the video , i broke down into tears….abt the condition of our people…Untouchability still exits right now…even in my village, although not in extreame, but the caste feeling is there…
we should all unite, atleast we should not be broken among us, GREAT WORK …lets educated people like us would uplift our brothers and sisters…..
Jai Bhim.
Comment by Chandra Bhanu — October 24, 2006 @ 3:40 pm
i am very sad after watching this ‘video showing the dalits in India’. this is the real india. most of us does not even know that this is happening in india. i request all the people to link to this video and let others (indians) know where we are living. why is media not acting on any of this issues. why am i so
I see no solution but to unite adopt a common religion (in my view buddhism is best) and ask for a separate homeland. No one can help you but yourself!!
Comment by Sicilian Don — October 26, 2006 @ 5:54 am
jai bheem….
this is the true condition of dalits…..i am a dalit..i have a better condition because my dad took right decisions for me at the right time…but truely our people are forced to do the things that make them untouchable for so called higher caste people…first and the basic thing is money and food which is restricting our children from going to schools and forcing them to work so that they could get some money for their home…
now regarding the reservation issue…i think when we talk about the IQ factor and all that..we have to consider the conditions in which a dalit student is studing..
suppose a so called higher caste student is scoring 90% after using all the luxury and tutions and all the facilities and not having tension of his bread and butter…
and at the other side a dalit student having no facilities and he has to work for getting his daily food…and still scoring 80% is far superior than the other student..
jai bheem…..
please sign it and also publish it in your blog for others to come and sign in huge numbers, I want to ask the President and Prime Minister about what their moral responsiblity, while dalits are killed every single day.
can u plz what are the other problems for this country? how come missionary is a problem? it is not a probglem abut a solution to an age old problem. probably u r a hindu that is why u see so much of hatred for these missionaries, otherwise ask those peoplw who have got benefits like education, jobs and other things of life which the hindus have denied to a major section for thousands of years.
to KJ
reservation is representation which is a part of larger agenda that is democratisation. therefore by provinding reservation wer are just creating space for these marginalised peop who have been denied rights for thousands of years. it is sad that government had to operationalise it whereas the demand should have been raised from the dominant sections who have been benefitting from this caste reservation for thousands of years, i.e. general or so called upper castes
no doubt thse people will get get advantage of reservation, i know u will now talk about education, that we understand is must but why do u always reduce it to reservation as if without reservation thes eeducationla problem will be solved more readily than having reservation.
now of creamy layer, reservation is not a poverty elimination program, it is about representation, therefore even if there r some sections which are rich first it cannot generalised to all.
second their percentage is very very low i.e. education, public and private sector, service industry, professional jobs etc etc.
if u r really genuine then ask for other measures also besides reservation.
Everyone discusses problems, but what about solutions?
Reservations…A hot topic but I fear they even know anything about resevations. I oppose reservations, had reservations helped SCs and STs till now? Or are these misused? You yourself know the answer well.
And country like India cannot progress until its root are made strong.
[...] As any regular reader of this blog would know, issues related to India’s caste system, and the plight of dalits, are of great concern to me. This blog actually has a category called caste - how many others do? - which has more posts than any other category in my blog. I’m not even counting the number of caste-related posts I’ve written over at How the Other Half Lives. I have written about how I came to be interested in caste. I have written about the discrimination that Dalit and backward caste journalists face in the newsrooms of Uttar Pradesh. I have for two years been running, with help from my friend Tarun Udwala, a mailing list that meticulously documents caste-related news, be it about violence or reservations. I have written about the work of exemplary dalit activists so that more people know about them, be it Banjamin Kaila’s Ambedkar Scholarships which he runs in Andhra Pradesh while sitting in the US. I have written about issues such as Dalit Christians and manual scavengers. I have also written about the complex issue of dalit-bahujan unity, via an article that sought to understand the politics of a Dalit writer. I recently wrote an obituary of India’s most respected leader of dalit in recent times, the indefatigable Kanshi Ram. But it is perhaps a testimony to the power of images over words that the most linked-to and commented-upon of my posts on caste was a YouTube video on the plight of Dalits. [...]
do not shed your tears for missionary films. there are many such ngos working in india to defame india and make money out of it. prime amongst them is one kancha illiah who wants to paint a poor picture of india in the un.
think logically! do you think these people need reservations in iit/iims professional colleges? they have a long way to go before reaching there. what they need is equality as citizens of india. the clamour for reservations is a creamy layer sponsored stuff. those elites who can vastly benefit from free upgradation whilst their children do not study to reach there on self-merit. already the constitution has been amended 103 times and all that is left for the citizen is pathetic! one is no more equal under the constitution and we have 50% reservations in vogue. in t.n it is 69% (what a joke!). the deserving do not get their seats while the reserved creamy layers enjoy all facilities even though they are richer than the so called upper class. this is vote based bias. and do not shed your tears for such sob operas. yes. it is touching indeed but…by making this film someone has already victimised them for own gains. those poors continue to get nothing!
THIS IS JUST AN 11 MINUTE CLIP FROM AN ALMOST 1.5 TO 2 HOURS LONG DOCUMENTARY FILM THAT I HAD SEEN AT TATA INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES IN MUMBAI!
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THERE WERE ABOUT 70 PEOPLE INITIALLY AT THE HALL TO SEE THIS DOCUMENTARY!
BUT ALL EXCEPT 3 PEOPLE COULD NOT STAND IT TILL THE END TO SEE THE REALITY OF “INDIA SHINING” !
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FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO LIKED THIS CLIP, I SUGGEST SEEING THE WHOLE DOCUMENTARY IF YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN STAND TO SEE THE TRUTH OF THE NEXT SUPERPOWER - INDIA .
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- SHABIN
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india will never become a super power. india will not exist beyond 2010. we shall become a vassal state of the US and chrisitans would rule over us. indians would lose their identity and independance as indians! already the writings are on the walls!
[...] it’s heartening to see the fight against apartheidbeing fought wherever it manifests itself. # posted by Yzerfontein : 9:02 PM Post a Comment <<Home [...]
one of the solns to eradicate caste system is education .A guy from the backward community can only be uplifted when he\she is aware about himself and his capabilities.
Comment by prem ranjan — November 20, 2006 @ 4:01 pm
Dear Friends,
A really excellent film about a Dalit child called Biru is in the voting for the BBC World TV Documentary of the Year award. The film, called “Being Indian”, is important and gives valuable airtime to Dalit issues on BBC World TV. It was first shown earlier this year.
We should all vote for it. If it wins the BBC will show it to the world again, amid a lot of publicity. The BBC will also pay more attention to Dalit issues, and so will India: This is a golden opportunity
Please vote at http://www.bbcworld.com (follow the links to Being Indian) and then forward this e-mail to as many like-minded people as possible.
Please don’t miss this chance. Votes must be cast by December 4th.
Krish
Comment by krishan patel — November 26, 2006 @ 1:55 pm
Hi,
Dalit hi Real hindu hai. en logo ne kaphi pareshaniyo ke bad bhi hindu dharma ko nahi choda jabki Brahman & Kshtriyo aur Agri cast walo ne Muslim Rulers ke aage dhutne tek diye. Ye log hi Real Bhartiya hai jo apne desh, dharma and apne samaj ko pyar karte hai. they are the real Hindu. I salute them.
Comment by Siddhartha S. Rai — November 26, 2006 @ 4:40 pm
hi,
the movie shows real, painful part of india. some people says how reservation helps them. if not reservation , what?. being a dalit, i say reservation is a must not only for dalith but also backward classes. dont talk about creamy layer. reservation is made for social just. it talks about representations but creamy layer talks about money. everybody needs representation in democratic country. so no leader(even though a dalith leader), no party will help these people but law will somewhat. i.e. the reservation.
today i am working as a software engineer because of reservation, ambedkar and E.V.Ramasamy Naicker(Periyaar from tamilnadu). as Periyaar told, the basic reason for all these is religion only. still the hindu religion propogates with “varna”. i hope reservation is a better one till not best.
Comment by karunanidhi — December 1, 2006 @ 3:13 pm
The documentary shows just a part of the many atrocities that are meted out to the Dalits on daily basis. They are still segregated, given second citizen status, raped, beaten, killed, and generally subjugated. All because they were born to it!!
What are the steps that we as people take to avoid this in our daily lives? I still have friends who live in the cities, but when they go to visit their native places, continue to perpetuate this treatment. And these are people who are ‘educated, enlightened, and forward-thinking’!!!
Unfortunately, reservation does not help because it does not reach these people. While the urban and fairly well-off Dalits have taken advantage of reservation, the people who most need it (the rural people and the people who live hand-to-mouth) still exist in poverty and despair. Most of them are not aware about their rights and the ones that are, are too afraid to speak up.
And how can they speak up and rise up if they are treated in this manner right from their birth?
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its a heart touching vedio shoot ..iam very sad to see all this happening with poor dalit people
at last while seeing the bite of innocent girl of gujaraat my tear s comes out
Comment by drshrikantkhare — December 25, 2006 @ 12:40 pm
despite being the natves scheduled castes and scheduled tribes are living in a very miserable state in their own country.after 5000 years of economical,social and physical exploitation they have been given reservation,the way change is given to a beggar.almost all the people living below poverty line in this country are sc/st.its not that they have become poor because of british rule,but they have been living in this state ever since aryans(who called themselves upper caste) invaded india.can anybody tell me what is the use of reservation for a person earning as little as 10Rs. a day?reservation cannot provide him a single meal.sc/st children are humiliated in schoos in the rural areas where the majority dalit’s live.they are seated seperately and are not allowed to drink from the tap or matka provided for the student’s.they are sidelined by other student’s(who are taught from the childhood that dalits are the lower caste and are born to serve them).this results in a large number of school drop outs.i think they need equality more than reservation.
[...] Hinduism — Caste System I have always considered Hinduism to be a very convoluted religion. All I know about it is that it’s followers worship many God’s in the form of idols. The Hindus consider the elephant, the snake, the cow and the monkey as sacred. All that is fine, but what I have a problem with is its caste system. The idea of judging people’s worth based on what family or group they are born into infuriates me. Why are the Dalit’s — called the untouchables by Brahmins and other castes — not allowed to live a life of dignity? How can a religion advocate discrimination? As far as I am aware, no other religion in the world promotes discrimination. What does the religion intend to achieve through this caste system? I am an ex-Muslim so I can vouch for Islam. The Quran states that all Muslims are equal, and that a person’s worth is to be judged not according to his social standing but by his virtuousness. Here is a video that inspired me to create this thread. I was aware that the Dalit’s were discriminated against to this day, but I had no idea it was this bad. I must warn you the video is mildly disturbing. Discuss. __________________ Livejournal Countries and Cultures moderator The District sleeps alone tonightAfter the bars turn out their lightsAnd send the autos swervingInto the loneliest eveningAnd I am finally seeingWhy I was the one worth leaving. [...]
The clip has moved me a lot. Though the condition of dalits is shown in this clip who constitute of about thirty percent of whole of indian population, its not only their condition which is miserable but also of our brothern obc . Whole of backwards(sc,st.obc) constitue of eighty five percent of indian population.
The only solution is to annihilate caste system which is our responsibility to work on these lines. A few educated group after pursing higher degress do not dare to think of their own brothern who are not able to get a minimum education. Leave about education , they dont have food to eat, not paid well for their job……..and we educated talk and argue in terms of brahamnical lines that we dont need reservations.
Babasaheb said to take the movement of ANNIHILATION OF CASTE coz if we dont work for our future generations they definitely wil have the plight of our ancestors. SO I WANT EVERYONE OF MY BROTHERN TO COME OUT OF BRHAMNICAL THINKING AND START WORKING IN ORDER TO BUILD OUR OWN SOCIETY …….MULNIVASI SOCIETY…….LETS FIGHT FOR EQUALITY AND LIBERATE OUR COUNTY……….JAI MULNIVASI
Really shameful acts by UC people. Even after 60 years of independence the condition of the dalits is same. Is there any chance of becoming a developed nation for INDIA?? Shame …
How shameful acts,now i don’t really believe in soakinig up this bullshit,my pack of endurance is empty.
Jurm karne wale se jurm sehne wala jyadaa gunhegaar hota hai.
I think the ball is now in our -THE YOUNGSTER DALITS’- side of court,and no one other than WE can chage the current condition in future.
To garv se kaho HUM DALIT HAI,HUM BHARTIYA HAI.
Be proud.Overwrite the trend.
Comment by shashank-I'm a DALIT — January 14, 2007 @ 10:04 pm
HI FRIENDS
YOU KNOW 1 THING WHAT WE EXPRESS IS JUST THAT WHAT WE LIVE. BY READING ALL THESE I BELIVE IN THAT THIS FILM IS ABOUT REALLITY THAT WHAT WE IGNORE ABOUT OUR SOCIETY N DONT WANT TO SEE, BUT ALSO DONT WANT TO SHUT IT DOWN.
WHEN WOMEN WRITE ABOUT THEIR STORIES OF BEING OR WORKING LIKE A SLAVE WE JUST REJECT THEM BY SAYING THAT “THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE” BUT FRIENDS WHEN WE SAY THAT IT IS JUST MALES ANGLE TOWARDS FEMALES.BY THE LAW CONSTITUTION NOW A DAYS WOMEN LEARNED AND BECOME EDUCATED, THATS WHY THEY ARE ABLE WRITE THEIR PROBLEMS AND THIS PROGRESS TAKES THEM TOWORDS LIVING AS A HUMAN WITH EQUALITY. BECAUSE THESE WRITING MAKES ALL HUMAN TO THINK IS IT LIKE THIS?.
U KNOW FRIENDS IF A BABY DOESNT CRY HOW CAN A MOTHER KNOW HE IS HUNGRY.
SO THE THING IS THAT WHAT GOOD EDUCATION CAN CHANGE IS THE GOOD LIFE FOR EVERY 1.
WHEN SOME LIVES HIS LIFE ON GROUND AND SOME ON TOP THE TOP PERSON NOT ABLE TO HERE THE VOICE FROM GROUND. THAT, WHAT KIND OF PROBLEM HE IS CREATING 4 GROND SO THE EVERY THING IS GOOD THIKS THE TOP PERSON. BUT WHEN THAT PERSON BECOMES IRRITATE N MAKE CRY 4 IT TOP PERSON WANT TO SHUT HIS MOUTH BECAUSE HIS SHOUT CAN MAKE TOP PERSON TO THE GROUND PERSON.
ACTUALLY WHY I AM SAYING THIS ALL? BECAUSE WE HAVE TO FIGHT 4 HUMANISM AND NOT 4 THE CASTISM
ACTUALLY CLIP IS NOT FALSE BUT I DONT LIKE IT CONSIDERING THAT BY THE 50 YEARS OF INDIAN INDEPENDANCE. WE HAVE TO SEE THIS 4 TODAYS LATEST…………………………….
Comment by KUNAL KALE — January 15, 2007 @ 6:07 pm
Unbeliveble.. I am ashamed calling myself as an Indian???????????
Comment by Prakash Kumar — January 17, 2007 @ 2:11 am
I am a so called Dalit by caste ,but i am equally treated by my counter parts may be because i lived my life in city but I am shocked and the video has brought me to tears when part of my community is living a down trodden lifestyle,I have been in best of convents and college and now live in USA ,I hope if there some medium or NGo through which i can support my people to live a btter life.Kindly let me know.
Thanks
Sreeni
Hello Sreeni
Good to hear that you are willing to help. There are multple ways you can do that. I think if you help one dalit student’s education it will help his or her’s moarle to fight this evil system. $200.00 per year will do a lot in India. Thanks
Comment by suresh Kumar — January 24, 2007 @ 4:57 am
The government doesnt really care about anyone. The entire government machinery is only a neccessary evil. Dalits can come up only if they realise their strength. The progressive dalits and dalit sympathisers need to pool their resources and support the less fortunate dalits.
This is the TRUE picture that is still going in many villages of “Shining India”. If anyone who think that whatever is shown is fake or not real, then i have nothing to say. But if someone think that this is true and need to stop this Non-humanity, let’s talk to me. I’m there to have the solution, help, assistance. Cause the feeling for this comes from your inside and none can generate it by any means. Hope u get what i means to say.
instead of going on and on.. is there any way we can track the girl who had to drop out from school and help her out ? please contact me if you know a way of getting the details.
you are a loser who doesn’t understand what the problem is. you are an attention whore who wants to prove his humanity by compiling such videos.
simply there is no point in discussing these issues with ppl who have internet access as they are busy with their own lives and don’t practise untouchability. It’s rather the lower caste and upper caste villagers who indulge in such things.
Enough of dalit videos and articles, we don’t need thousand ppl who show that something is happening when we all know it is happening. what we need is action. do something to stop it.
Most of us know the reality of lives of our dalits in India. Many Indians feel disturbed when they hear about the racism in the US or the apartheid in SA but we become ignorant of what is happening in our own backyard. Often the dalit struggles are not exposed to the world. We can be proud of our India and our country men and women only when we can see smiles in the faces of these dalits. Instead of cursing darkness, let us light a candle. Every little bit can make difference in the lives of our dalits. Then we can make India a better place for every one. http://www.dalitsolidarity.org
Some years back, the upper caste had one good reason to give phenomenon of conversion of dalits to other religions. Reason was, other religions are rich and can allure dalits to convert by offering money. Decades later tables have turned, world wide hindus are among the most succesful people in the world, so how many people now are going around to keep dalits in hindu religion back? One of the many examples of upper caste hindu bigotry.
i havent watched the whole video…my net speed is really bad so sorry…but will watch it in a while…but the comment here remind me of an incident at me in-laws’ place…there was this new maid we had employed and i went to talk with her…i was drinking tea and chatting when my sis-in-law came and saw me…she asked me to never do it again as it was belived that if you drink/eat in front of a dalit you develop a complete aversion to that thing…she went on to qoute a few examples where a similar thing had happened…i felt too bad for tht lady and that was also the time that i realised that such things don’t just happen in some remote village
i though about it a little more deeply and realised we have been doing this for a long time..for eg. we had seperate glasses, dishes for all the menial lobourers and i was always told its because those people live in shanties and there is very little sanitation and so may carry lots of germs and we may become sick…i never thought about in any other manner and now i do realise how wrong i was and how discriminatory even my mom-dad were.
there are a lot many things i have to learn yet and the more i read about these matters the more i feel i have been extremely unfair; but when i did it i was just a small child and didn’t understand what it all meant. maybe there are lots of other people like me who do all this because of their ignorance…and i just hope that they too realise how cruel they have been. and thanks a lot for sharing the video…its a real eye-opener.
ignorant city-bred people (like me) who have been discriminating all their life without ever realising it can learn a lot from such articles and videos…and then we can spread the awareness through our family and friends and i have done so with a few of my cousins and in-laws just with the aid of a few frowns and discouraging words; i have even defied my ma-in-law by giving a ‘good’ glass to our driver…and always treating him as an equal. thanks to my ignorance again that she could never discriminate in front of me as i’d always pose her with the “whys” and “hows”
Hi! Strange. Indian leadership says”It does not Believe in Caste System”.So far so Good. Now, The reservations are based on Caste System!! The Indian Constitution uses Caste as a creteria for Reservation Vertically. Scavengers! How many know today “60% + of Scavengers are BRAHMINS in UP and Delhi. Most of the porters(Coolie) in Railway stations are Brahmins! The intermedetiary castes are opressing Brahmins and the Un-touchables in India and in Indian Communities abroad(Example: TANA,Telugu Aoosciation of North America,ATA, American Telugu Association). Opression of Brahmins in Tamil Nadu,Andhra, Karnataka,Maharastra,Bihar…Parts of UP…The people who realized that untouchability is a crime are the brahmins,they have accepted the fact 60 years back and have tried to get and work with the opressed.In return, they lost their wealth,position,jobs,pride…everything…infact,they got kinda assimulated into the Opressed classes and are now opressed,by the “opressed classes,muslims,christains and the other upper classes.Whats the solution. Demand a Brahmin land “BrahmaDesha”..infact Lord Brahma who is the the creator is not worshipped ..coz he is the father of all brahmins!! This is reverse discrimination. As far as Temple Entry…the Brahmins agreed 100+ years a go…its the Intermediatry classes.Stop harassing Brahmins,give them reservation and protect them as the Opressed classes have been.By the way,ALL the archaks in Jagunath Temple are Tribals and not brahmins…so dont blame the brahmins for the ills of the society.Its the powerful LAND LORDS(THAKURS,SINGH and RAJA SAHEB) who is blamed for all the ills of the Hindu Society.
Now,Neo-Buddhaism, Shameful! Is it an ism…socialism,marxism,classism..severalisms.shameful.Its Lound and Clear…”Bouddha Dharma”. Thats the rite word.I wish a discussion on this.Correct me if I am wrong. By talking of Buddism(Bouddha Dharma) and casteism are we not pushing..highjacking Bouddha Dharma and making it into a caste by itself? Is any SC or ST,OBC,FC(OC) leaving his/her Caste? Dalit itself has become a caste. Is educating the masses and instilling Dharma in them not the solution. Acadamic Qualification is not enough. Let bygones be bygones…Cant we all get together and instil samskars in a person.Cant we rediscover ourselves? Can not we all sit trash out the differences and build a New Bharat? How long will we all live in anguish? Its Lound and Clear. “THE POWERFUL WILL TRY TO ENFORCE HIMSELF ON THE WEAK”. Now,This is what Hindu Dharma wants to eridicate. Lets all sit together and make resolutions to a New India Lets create an enviourment where Merit prevails. .”Everybody is equal,with equal oppurtunities”. Lets all uplift the poor and disadvantaged. Jai Hind
Gurunath gurnath@gmail.com
why do u just take some upper caste people and blame the whole community.these things only happen in villages where the people r narrow minded and do not wish to change themselves or their beliefs.i’d like to see stuff like this happening in cities.
if what u r showing us is true and stuff like this has been happening 4 ages , why dont u blame the govt for not providing enough protection to the dalits.after all these r the people who brought the politicians into power.so many killings and no action has been taken.even the woman in the end tells us that the govt doesnt do anything.
the girl tellus us how she’s illtreated by her classmates and the teacher doesnt do anyhing about it.what kind of people do this?what steps has the govt taken to improve this condition in the villages?
its the govts responsibility to improve the conditions at the lower level. u can blame some sections in the upper caste in villages that is.but u cant blame the whole community.people in cities lead a far beter life than those in villages.
first of all tell the govt to do something .and just dont bloody show some pity to these people over the net.do something about it.
[...] System This is a very disturbing video - not suitable for a wek heart! http://www.shivamvij.com/2006/10/i-a…w-are-you.html when will we change! If we want the hinduism to survive and prosper, we will have to change it! - [...]
I am Engg-Mkt in NCR based firm, did my BTech EE in 2006 from Pantnagar UK.
Socially ; wherever i see an opportunity to inform some one : may be in real life , to the person who works in my office toilet; or through internet , i try to inform/educate them of their rights, coz i believ knowledge is the greatest power they need, since afterall for their rights they have to fight themselves ; but with this weapon calle dknowledge ! and i m with them !
I must say that the people who are sitting in planning comission should watch the condition of dalits not in the statictic wise but the real condition of dalits .One day will come and we hate the word “HINDU” & “HINDUSTAN”. Shame on you indians if upper caste people doing rapes with the dalit women in front of peoples & childs. nahin rehna aisa hindustan mein or nahin jaana aise hindu dharm mein.
Comment by Pankaj kumar kain — June 1, 2007 @ 9:13 pm
[...] ‘I am a Dalit. How are you?’ Published by Shivam Vij 8 months ago in Blogging. [...]
Sorry to be so pessimistic, but nothing is going to change as long as our corrupt babus and money hungry bureaucrats run this country.
You talk about reservations. Do you know how many Dalits benefit from them? Almost none. If you observe today most of the reservation goes for BC/OBC etc, but look at a prestigious place like IIT/IIM etc and almost none of the SC/ST/Dalit reserved seats are taken.
To draw an analogy, consider what is happening in Africa. Countries like Uganda, Ethiopia, etc are in dire poverty and despair after decades of international “aid”. Why? It is the same as reservation. Aid does not help them one bit. Most of the money goes to their dictators or warlords. The people cannot stand on their own two feet and be self sufficient if we think aid or reservation is the key to everything.
Our politicians fail to address the basic reason why this happens: education and facilities. I tell you, it is ONLY by education and empowerment can the Dalits overcome their fate. We have treated our citizens like this for thousands of years. It won’t change tomorrow, or next year, or in the next 5 years. Reservation will not improve their fate, and it has not, for the past 60 years since independence.
The only way to save the situation is to radically change the system of government, incentive for corruption and nepotism in all levels of government. We can learn from a “totalitarian” country like China. Execute these morons who are mired in corruption. No trial, no leniency. Mandate by law, education programs and vocational training for dalits. Empower them to become teachers and professionals.
The caste system was a relic of 5000 years ago. People who still cling to those obsolete beliefs deserve to become obsolete themselves. This is a shame to our country and our culture. The best thing that can happen is to abolish the caste system and reservation by law. Yeah, great thoughts but I doubg that will ever happen during my lifetime.
This is very depressing and sad, untouchability needs to be removed.
My experiences of my village in Kutch India over 2 decades has seen a very big improvement in the lives of lower caste and dalits. This only happened because they got a good representation in the panchayat. However, there is a still along way to go. I remember lower caste coming to clean toilets in houses 20 years ago. Today the house owners themselves to it. This happened because of rapid economic growth where opportunities exist in other trades, like building and commerce.
Changing the mind set of the upper caste in india is a very big challenge. The only solution is economic enpowerment and education.
Because of untouchability in India, it only had one Ambedkar, imagine if there was no untouchability, India would have had thousands of Ambedkar and it would have made India a great power and nation by now.
Talking to a colleague of mine in the UK about this issue. He reminded me that only 80 years ago in England, Children were climbing Chimney of the rich and their families doing very dirty jobs, But economic and education changed all that. The class system is all but dead in the UK within a space of 100 years.
Till what time we shall suffer like this come to the fold of Dr Baba Saheb Ambedker GET EDUCATED, UNITE, STRUGGLE TO ATTAIN SELF RESPECT , SHED ALL EVILS OF SMOKING, DRINKING,CHEWING TOBACOO, MAKE YOUR OWN GROUPS AND FIGHT IN A UNITED MANNER , REFUSE TO COME UNDER ANY PRESSURE AND NEVER LOSE SELFRESPECT SCOME WHAT MAY . FEEL PROUD TO BE A NON HINDU. PREPARE TO RULE INDIA ONCE AGAIN. JANAK KUMAR.
I feel really sorry for the Girl..but nothing can be done..its few Uppercaste Idiots making the whole nation shamefull. Untouchability shud be abolished completely.
There’s no point in talking and hoping that things will change sometime. Its a shame that even after 60 years of “independance” we are not yet free. What’s stopping us, I ask to remove these barriers of discrimination? The answer is no surprise, its us…the people of India.
What can we do you may ask…start small. Stop discrimination in your lives, stop being a mute spectator when people discriminate. Stop asking your servants to clean the toilets…treat these people with respect…and think if you were in their position, how would you feel.
Its not too late to start, don’t hesitate to point out the wrongs, appreciate the rights…in a small way…
I believe and have faith that the day when we manage to remove the shackles of casteism from our own minds, half the battle would be won.
Make a difference…
Comment by Make a Difference — September 8, 2007 @ 8:44 pm
Seeing these videos, shedding tears, feeling bad, etc etc will never solve any problem.
One thing is pretty clear. We are all under cast system, and caste system is a conspiracy of Brahmins.
The only solution to these problems is to annihilate caste.
To do this, all sc, st, and obc people should shed these caste identities.
These caste identities are not ours.
Aryans gave these identities to us, to divide us.
These identities are not giving us self respect.
These identities are humiliating us.
So all sc st and obc people in India should unite under a common name.
That name is MULNIVASI.
Mulnivasi is a hindi word which means aboriginal people and rightfull owners of this land, India .
So all sc st and obc people should call each other MULNIVASIS
Pass on this message all over the country.
90% of Indian sc st and obc people do not know a very very important thing.
All sc, st, obc, people in india, and people from these communities who are converted into various other religions like muslims, Sikhs, jains, etc etc belong to one blood and one race.
Arayns are none other than Brahmins, kshatriyas, and vyshyas.
These Aryans are foreigners. They are not Indians.
God made everybody equal. how do i know this …its in the bible. Since this truth is not in the hindu scriptures means that God has not inspired those satanic verses that make up the hindu books. Search your heart and you will know that you have been lied to all along by the hindu leaders/gurus and hindu gods. The caste system is a religion to oppress people who are all made in the very image of god.
The countries that have equal rights for everybody got their idea from the bible because thats what god wants us to do…i.e. love your neighbour as u love yourselve. And some or you are talking about banning missionaries when these are the people who are at least doing something for them which is practical. And those of you who are oposing these missionaries who are doing gods will….rest assured that Jesus said the the comfort that you have now is the only thing you will ever have while those who are suffering will be comforted in the world to come.
India needs the truth about the creator God who has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Unless it does that it will still carry this shame to the rest of the world no matter how much it tries. You can’t hide the truth….the world wants to help this people and yet theres opposition from the politicians. what are they afriad of???
Please see the powerful short film (of about 10 minutes) over at Shivam’s blog.
Pingback by nanopolitan — October 13, 2006 @ 8:48 am
[...] Link Via Shivam [...]
Pingback by I am Dalit. How are you? « Polite Indian — October 14, 2006 @ 1:56 am
[...] Shivam Vij points to a Youtube video on the issues and troubles of the Dalit community in India. [...]
Pingback by Global Voices Online » Blog Archive » India: Dalits and Rights — October 14, 2006 @ 1:08 pm
Links For October 14, 2006
“I am a Dalit. How are you?” A troubling video about the fate of Dalits in India brought to us by Shivam Vij. [Via Neha Viswanathan] Yahoo! Time Capsule. Hurry you have only until November 8 to contribute to this interesting project that will be host…
Trackback by Tiffinbox — October 14, 2006 @ 9:30 pm
posts on this topic later, especially about my ancestral town of Nagpur, but in the meanwhile, this video is worth watching to get a glimpse of the treatment of Dalits in contemporary times. (Link by way of Ashvin’s SepiaMutiny comment linking to Shivam Vij’s site)
Pingback by Brooklyn Masala — October 15, 2006 @ 6:47 am
Even those of us elite who are aware that life for dalits is nothing to write home about have little or no idea of the actual reality. Thanks for administering a little of this badly need dose of reality. More is needed.
Comment by suresh — October 15, 2006 @ 8:14 pm
I was moved to tears. With activist work like this, I hope the rich become poorer, and the poor richer.
Truly we are not human, we Indians. We Brahmins. We crush their will to live, systematically to steal their energy and life-force. Like vampires. Or bloodscukers.
I hope I can grow up to be a good Dalit, one day.
Comment by Sujatha — October 16, 2006 @ 10:00 am
This video highlights the discrimination most Indians are aware of but feign ignorance or sweep under the carpet. This is the reality and the world must come to know of it and take the govt and people to task. Its the indian middle class in the towns and villages that bully the dalit people. Its a sadistic race.
Comment by Paddy Kneebone — October 16, 2006 @ 12:10 pm
This is the real India…not mumbai..not delhi…Its makes me feel sick that I live in a country where people are treated worse then animals and then when govt proposes some actions like reservations qe jump on thier throats…but then when govt has done almost nothing in the field of Primary education( free primary education is not a fundamental right in Indian constitution) for them its been 60 years…reserving fifty % seats for them in IIMs ans IITs …do you think these people will ever even reach or better ever hear of these institutes…I dont think so…Ministers like Mr Arjun Singh is only lookin at griding his axe and has no good interest at heart…I hope that people realise that these are own brothers and sisters..imagine if one were to treat us differently…discriminate and make us feel like lesser human beings…
On must always remember…what we would not like somebody to us we must never to someone else
Comment by prerna — October 16, 2006 @ 7:49 pm
Prerna,
Just for the record, the reservations proposed by Arjun Singh are for OBCs. The video is about Dalits and reservation does exist for them. Let us not mix dalit and OBC stories…just to keep the context clear.
Having said that, you are spot on when you these people will not even hear about IITs or IIMs and nor will thier kids. The Govt. has failed miserably in helping the Dalits.
Yes Education is a solution but not the only solution. It is a part of the bigger solution. Sanitation in India is pathetic. The world has gone way ahead and we still use these dehumanizing processes. Why? Because labour is cheap and the society as a whole treats these people as filth of the society.
As the video says, manual scavenging was abolished but it is still there in many parts of India. I think there are couple of things lacking. First there is no awareness among the dalits about the law and different programmes run by GOI. Second, these communities are not organized. They need to get organized. That will give them the power to get the laws implemented, spread the awareness and eventually make the communities aware of IITs and IIMs eventually.
Take an example of the cities(especially big cities like Delhi, Kanpur, Chandigarh), most of the domestic workers now have taken a stand that will clean the house but will not clean the toilets. And you can see that most people clean their toilet themselves. No one in the city can FORCE the domestic workers to do that if they don’t want to. In cities these are organized to an extent that they have a voice and if they wish they can boycott a particular house. That is the power of getting organized.
The Dalits have gotten organized but certain communities within the dalits are still neglected. Bhangis are the worst affected. There needs to be a bhangi organization that will raise their voice and show the plight of the bhangis to the world and do something about them.
Comment by Polite Indian — October 16, 2006 @ 9:52 pm
dear prerna,
first the question of obc reservation has much to do with the social fabrics of the society. obc makes a major part of our population. if some obc castes have come up the economic ladder it cannot be generalised to all. why r u joining obc reservation with this issue.
the condition of dalits is pathetic. let me remind u that there r several obc castes which live like slaves on this earth.
labour is cheap and the society as a whole treats these people as filth of the society”. but let me remind u that labour is cheap not because of abudance of labour but it is because of the hierarchisation and dehumanisation of labour in indian society. the low castes live in acute poverty, there r much dependents and earning sources are limited and all dirty works get low wages as an rule.
for me reservation is a proces of democratisation and representation . it is also about equality and equity. it is not a revenge against uppper castes so called. resrvation is one of the solutions of equity building not a concrete solution. in a long run we hav eto decide how we can integrate thse people in the society which have been excluded for thousand s of years. you may get sympathy of this video but still some old prejudices are left within us which promote us from making such points. if u r really interested in upliftmwnt of these people then u have to support landreforms, reservation 9in private sector as well as public sector, eeucation to all ………etcetc
the real problems of this coujtry is caste based division and it is visible in all the spheres of the society like occupational, social, educational, economic, religious, political etc etc
Comment by prashant — October 17, 2006 @ 10:40 am
Any way i would like to support reservation till discrimiation towrds dalits gets normal.
At least a man can’t dare to say a sweeper cast with bad class because his boss himself belongs to swwper class. This discrimination was due to misconception that Brahmins can only understand good things and sweepers can’t do nothing better then doing lower jobs so Brahmins are superior, now slowly-slowly SC-ST students are scoring well and SC-ST employes are also performing well so Upper class people now can’t say that these people can’t do anything so discriminate them.
But Its Sad ! Even today everywhere upper-caste people or students think that lower-class students can’t perform well or they are not intelligent so they need reservation.
—This is just example of illogical mentallity because every generation is producing new children who god/nature discriminate while putting intelligence into their mind ? Only answer is all Dalit don’t get opportunity to apply for every competition so in less quantity quality has to be low. But I tell you, things are improving.
News of 1000s no. of conversion to buddhism is evidence that dalits wat get rid of the cast-discrimination. I hope people and government will be doing something to get rid of this social-evil in India.
Comment by Ashvini Kumar Meena — October 17, 2006 @ 6:36 pm
Very very sad.
Comment by Manas Shaikh — October 17, 2006 @ 9:02 pm
Its the 4-varna system that killed the dreams and hopes of a part of society for generations together. In a few areas of country it might look as if we left this behind but unfortunately a major part of country still remains infected by descrimination. Its people who introduced and practiced it so harshly and still continuing. So its them who need working to get rid of it.
Its every individual who first needs to remove these thoughts from their minds completely and then spread the word to educate those around. If Govt supports it with strict implementation of relevant laws then hopefully, a couple of generations down, India will have a descrimination free dawn.
Comment by Indian — October 18, 2006 @ 2:43 am
hi, this is really sad to see, but we cant blame the government for this its the brahmins who are in the post dont want to force the law, some of the above people have written to separate OBC’s issuses and SC’s issues apart… i have a question for them WILL YOU PEOPLE STOP DICSRIMINATING AGAINST CRIMES???? A CRIME IS A CRIME….
Comment by Abhijeet — October 18, 2006 @ 10:44 am
[...] I came across this video through Shivam’s blog and it is highlights the discrimination that Dalits have to go through every day in their lives and going through such a life make them convert themselves to Buddhism and other religions. If converting themselves to some other religion gets their pride back and they are given rights equal to others then this is a viable option, I don’t find anything wrong in this. [...]
Pingback by Bloogreen » India’s Untouchables turn to Buddhism — October 19, 2006 @ 11:42 am
HI,
This indeed, should be brought into consideration of government. People should also payback to society by supporting their own people who have been subject of prejudices,& miseries because of thier very work which had been assigned to them, as only source of living, by bramanical social order.
According me ,this bramanical social order should be severly condemned.
Comment by Sachindra — October 19, 2006 @ 11:54 am
a very touching film!!!!!
Comment by ritu — October 21, 2006 @ 2:13 pm
CAN ANYBODY EXPLAIN HOW RESERVATIONS ARE GOING TO HELP THESE PEOPLE
Comment by KJ — October 22, 2006 @ 12:45 am
A very moving film
Comment by blu — October 22, 2006 @ 4:36 am
we all knew there were instances of this, but in 2006?? how could the people be happy when their own is treated this way? such things dont happen anywhere else in this world, not even in darkest africa. i guess this is darkest india.
Comment by trudy — October 24, 2006 @ 2:12 pm
hello brother…
when i saw the video , i broke down into tears….abt the condition of our people…Untouchability still exits right now…even in my village, although not in extreame, but the caste feeling is there…
we should all unite, atleast we should not be broken among us, GREAT WORK …lets educated people like us would uplift our brothers and sisters…..
Jai Bhim.
Comment by Chandra Bhanu — October 24, 2006 @ 3:40 pm
i am very sad after watching this ‘video showing the dalits in India’. this is the real india. most of us does not even know that this is happening in india. i request all the people to link to this video and let others (indians) know where we are living. why is media not acting on any of this issues. why am i so
Pingback by double trouble — October 25, 2006 @ 5:32 am
I see no solution but to unite adopt a common religion (in my view buddhism is best) and ask for a separate homeland. No one can help you but yourself!!
Comment by Sicilian Don — October 26, 2006 @ 5:54 am
jai bheem….
this is the true condition of dalits…..i am a dalit..i have a better condition because my dad took right decisions for me at the right time…but truely our people are forced to do the things that make them untouchable for so called higher caste people…first and the basic thing is money and food which is restricting our children from going to schools and forcing them to work so that they could get some money for their home…
now regarding the reservation issue…i think when we talk about the IQ factor and all that..we have to consider the conditions in which a dalit student is studing..
suppose a so called higher caste student is scoring 90% after using all the luxury and tutions and all the facilities and not having tension of his bread and butter…
and at the other side a dalit student having no facilities and he has to work for getting his daily food…and still scoring 80% is far superior than the other student..
jai bheem…..
Comment by vinod — October 29, 2006 @ 12:57 am
This is just ATROCIOUS!!! its time people stood up against such trash otherwise this nation is DOOMED by many forces, one being missionaries!!!
Comment by Sri — October 29, 2006 @ 4:54 pm
Dear Shivam Vij
I posted this video several months ago, good to see people see this and realise about the pitiable India.
I wish you are aware about the petition against dalit atrocity in India, if not, here it is:
http://www.gopetition.com/online/9773.html
please sign it and also publish it in your blog for others to come and sign in huge numbers, I want to ask the President and Prime Minister about what their moral responsiblity, while dalits are killed every single day.
Best,
Muni
Comment by Muni — October 30, 2006 @ 1:29 am
dear sri
can u plz what are the other problems for this country? how come missionary is a problem? it is not a probglem abut a solution to an age old problem. probably u r a hindu that is why u see so much of hatred for these missionaries, otherwise ask those peoplw who have got benefits like education, jobs and other things of life which the hindus have denied to a major section for thousands of years.
to KJ
reservation is representation which is a part of larger agenda that is democratisation. therefore by provinding reservation wer are just creating space for these marginalised peop who have been denied rights for thousands of years. it is sad that government had to operationalise it whereas the demand should have been raised from the dominant sections who have been benefitting from this caste reservation for thousands of years, i.e. general or so called upper castes
no doubt thse people will get get advantage of reservation, i know u will now talk about education, that we understand is must but why do u always reduce it to reservation as if without reservation thes eeducationla problem will be solved more readily than having reservation.
now of creamy layer, reservation is not a poverty elimination program, it is about representation, therefore even if there r some sections which are rich first it cannot generalised to all.
second their percentage is very very low i.e. education, public and private sector, service industry, professional jobs etc etc.
if u r really genuine then ask for other measures also besides reservation.
thanks
Comment by prashant — October 30, 2006 @ 3:21 pm
Everyone discusses problems, but what about solutions?
Reservations…A hot topic but I fear they even know anything about resevations. I oppose reservations, had reservations helped SCs and STs till now? Or are these misused? You yourself know the answer well.
And country like India cannot progress until its root are made strong.
Comment by Raj Shrikant — October 30, 2006 @ 9:47 pm
[...] As any regular reader of this blog would know, issues related to India’s caste system, and the plight of dalits, are of great concern to me. This blog actually has a category called caste - how many others do? - which has more posts than any other category in my blog. I’m not even counting the number of caste-related posts I’ve written over at How the Other Half Lives. I have written about how I came to be interested in caste. I have written about the discrimination that Dalit and backward caste journalists face in the newsrooms of Uttar Pradesh. I have for two years been running, with help from my friend Tarun Udwala, a mailing list that meticulously documents caste-related news, be it about violence or reservations. I have written about the work of exemplary dalit activists so that more people know about them, be it Banjamin Kaila’s Ambedkar Scholarships which he runs in Andhra Pradesh while sitting in the US. I have written about issues such as Dalit Christians and manual scavengers. I have also written about the complex issue of dalit-bahujan unity, via an article that sought to understand the politics of a Dalit writer. I recently wrote an obituary of India’s most respected leader of dalit in recent times, the indefatigable Kanshi Ram. But it is perhaps a testimony to the power of images over words that the most linked-to and commented-upon of my posts on caste was a YouTube video on the plight of Dalits. [...]
Pingback by Their motives and mine at National Highway — November 2, 2006 @ 6:24 pm
do not shed your tears for missionary films. there are many such ngos working in india to defame india and make money out of it. prime amongst them is one kancha illiah who wants to paint a poor picture of india in the un.
think logically! do you think these people need reservations in iit/iims professional colleges? they have a long way to go before reaching there. what they need is equality as citizens of india. the clamour for reservations is a creamy layer sponsored stuff. those elites who can vastly benefit from free upgradation whilst their children do not study to reach there on self-merit. already the constitution has been amended 103 times and all that is left for the citizen is pathetic! one is no more equal under the constitution and we have 50% reservations in vogue. in t.n it is 69% (what a joke!). the deserving do not get their seats while the reserved creamy layers enjoy all facilities even though they are richer than the so called upper class. this is vote based bias. and do not shed your tears for such sob operas. yes. it is touching indeed but…by making this film someone has already victimised them for own gains. those poors continue to get nothing!
Comment by babu — November 4, 2006 @ 4:23 pm
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THIS IS JUST AN 11 MINUTE CLIP FROM AN ALMOST 1.5 TO 2 HOURS LONG DOCUMENTARY FILM THAT I HAD SEEN AT TATA INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES IN MUMBAI!
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THERE WERE ABOUT 70 PEOPLE INITIALLY AT THE HALL TO SEE THIS DOCUMENTARY!
BUT ALL EXCEPT 3 PEOPLE COULD NOT STAND IT TILL THE END TO SEE THE REALITY OF “INDIA SHINING” !
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FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO LIKED THIS CLIP, I SUGGEST SEEING THE WHOLE DOCUMENTARY IF YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN STAND TO SEE THE TRUTH OF THE NEXT SUPERPOWER - INDIA .
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- SHABIN
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Comment by SHABIN — November 4, 2006 @ 5:54 pm
india will never become a super power. india will not exist beyond 2010. we shall become a vassal state of the US and chrisitans would rule over us. indians would lose their identity and independance as indians! already the writings are on the walls!
Comment by babu — November 4, 2006 @ 7:57 pm
[...] [...]
Pingback by Caste, Varna and Jati - Siddha Forum — November 11, 2006 @ 2:25 am
[...] Acesso através do blog Shivanjiv (Youtube) Responder a esta matéria Copyright © 2004 - 2006 por Rede de Autoria Ciranda Todo material neste sítio web, pode ser reproduzido livremente, desde que permaneça livre e a fonte seja citada, seguindo os termos da Creative Commons License: Atribuição-UsoNãoComercial-PermanênciaDaLicença. [...]
Pingback by Sou Dalit, lembra-se de mim? — November 13, 2006 @ 12:09 am
hi everybody, i am new here.
i am not getting the video i-am-a-dalit-how-are-you, can anybody please tell me where i can watch it…..
Comment by prashanth — November 18, 2006 @ 2:03 pm
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one of the solns to eradicate caste system is education .A guy from the backward community can only be uplifted when he\she is aware about himself and his capabilities.
Comment by prem ranjan — November 20, 2006 @ 4:01 pm
Dear Friends,
A really excellent film about a Dalit child called Biru is in the voting for the BBC World TV Documentary of the Year award. The film, called “Being Indian”, is important and gives valuable airtime to Dalit issues on BBC World TV. It was first shown earlier this year.
We should all vote for it. If it wins the BBC will show it to the world again, amid a lot of publicity. The BBC will also pay more attention to Dalit issues, and so will India: This is a golden opportunity
Please vote at http://www.bbcworld.com (follow the links to Being Indian) and then forward this e-mail to as many like-minded people as possible.
Please don’t miss this chance. Votes must be cast by December 4th.
Krish
Comment by krishan patel — November 26, 2006 @ 1:55 pm
Hi,
Dalit hi Real hindu hai. en logo ne kaphi pareshaniyo ke bad bhi hindu dharma ko nahi choda jabki Brahman & Kshtriyo aur Agri cast walo ne Muslim Rulers ke aage dhutne tek diye. Ye log hi Real Bhartiya hai jo apne desh, dharma and apne samaj ko pyar karte hai. they are the real Hindu. I salute them.
Comment by Siddhartha S. Rai — November 26, 2006 @ 4:40 pm
hi,
the movie shows real, painful part of india. some people says how reservation helps them. if not reservation , what?. being a dalit, i say reservation is a must not only for dalith but also backward classes. dont talk about creamy layer. reservation is made for social just. it talks about representations but creamy layer talks about money. everybody needs representation in democratic country. so no leader(even though a dalith leader), no party will help these people but law will somewhat. i.e. the reservation.
today i am working as a software engineer because of reservation, ambedkar and E.V.Ramasamy Naicker(Periyaar from tamilnadu). as Periyaar told, the basic reason for all these is religion only. still the hindu religion propogates with “varna”. i hope reservation is a better one till not best.
Comment by karunanidhi — December 1, 2006 @ 3:13 pm
The documentary shows just a part of the many atrocities that are meted out to the Dalits on daily basis. They are still segregated, given second citizen status, raped, beaten, killed, and generally subjugated. All because they were born to it!!
What are the steps that we as people take to avoid this in our daily lives? I still have friends who live in the cities, but when they go to visit their native places, continue to perpetuate this treatment. And these are people who are ‘educated, enlightened, and forward-thinking’!!!
Unfortunately, reservation does not help because it does not reach these people. While the urban and fairly well-off Dalits have taken advantage of reservation, the people who most need it (the rural people and the people who live hand-to-mouth) still exist in poverty and despair. Most of them are not aware about their rights and the ones that are, are too afraid to speak up.
And how can they speak up and rise up if they are treated in this manner right from their birth?
Comment by smruti — December 6, 2006 @ 1:04 pm
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its a heart touching vedio shoot ..iam very sad to see all this happening with poor dalit people
at last while seeing the bite of innocent girl of gujaraat my tear s comes out
Comment by drshrikantkhare — December 25, 2006 @ 12:40 pm
Another story of dalit atrocity
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1879805,000600030006.htm
Comment by Sicilian — December 31, 2006 @ 8:59 am
despite being the natves scheduled castes and scheduled tribes are living in a very miserable state in their own country.after 5000 years of economical,social and physical exploitation they have been given reservation,the way change is given to a beggar.almost all the people living below poverty line in this country are sc/st.its not that they have become poor because of british rule,but they have been living in this state ever since aryans(who called themselves upper caste) invaded india.can anybody tell me what is the use of reservation for a person earning as little as 10Rs. a day?reservation cannot provide him a single meal.sc/st children are humiliated in schoos in the rural areas where the majority dalit’s live.they are seated seperately and are not allowed to drink from the tap or matka provided for the student’s.they are sidelined by other student’s(who are taught from the childhood that dalits are the lower caste and are born to serve them).this results in a large number of school drop outs.i think they need equality more than reservation.
Comment by gaurav — January 3, 2007 @ 9:30 pm
IF DALITS WERE PROVIDED THEIR RIGHTS THEN THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NO NAXALITE MOVEMENT IN INDIA…..
Comment by gaurav — January 3, 2007 @ 9:36 pm
Check this out:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1884292,000600030006.htm
Got this thanks to the link provided by Sicilian above!
Comment by Arun Dewan — January 4, 2007 @ 8:01 pm
[...] Hinduism — Caste System I have always considered Hinduism to be a very convoluted religion. All I know about it is that it’s followers worship many God’s in the form of idols. The Hindus consider the elephant, the snake, the cow and the monkey as sacred. All that is fine, but what I have a problem with is its caste system. The idea of judging people’s worth based on what family or group they are born into infuriates me. Why are the Dalit’s — called the untouchables by Brahmins and other castes — not allowed to live a life of dignity? How can a religion advocate discrimination? As far as I am aware, no other religion in the world promotes discrimination. What does the religion intend to achieve through this caste system? I am an ex-Muslim so I can vouch for Islam. The Quran states that all Muslims are equal, and that a person’s worth is to be judged not according to his social standing but by his virtuousness. Here is a video that inspired me to create this thread. I was aware that the Dalit’s were discriminated against to this day, but I had no idea it was this bad. I must warn you the video is mildly disturbing. Discuss. __________________ Livejournal Countries and Cultures moderator The District sleeps alone tonightAfter the bars turn out their lightsAnd send the autos swervingInto the loneliest eveningAnd I am finally seeingWhy I was the one worth leaving. [...]
Pingback by Hinduism -- Caste System - GovTeen Forums — January 5, 2007 @ 7:09 pm
The clip has moved me a lot. Though the condition of dalits is shown in this clip who constitute of about thirty percent of whole of indian population, its not only their condition which is miserable but also of our brothern obc . Whole of backwards(sc,st.obc) constitue of eighty five percent of indian population.
The only solution is to annihilate caste system which is our responsibility to work on these lines. A few educated group after pursing higher degress do not dare to think of their own brothern who are not able to get a minimum education. Leave about education , they dont have food to eat, not paid well for their job……..and we educated talk and argue in terms of brahamnical lines that we dont need reservations.
Babasaheb said to take the movement of ANNIHILATION OF CASTE coz if we dont work for our future generations they definitely wil have the plight of our ancestors. SO I WANT EVERYONE OF MY BROTHERN TO COME OUT OF BRHAMNICAL THINKING AND START WORKING IN ORDER TO BUILD OUR OWN SOCIETY …….MULNIVASI SOCIETY…….LETS FIGHT FOR EQUALITY AND LIBERATE OUR COUNTY……….JAI MULNIVASI
Comment by chaitanya — January 6, 2007 @ 2:52 pm
Really shameful acts by UC people. Even after 60 years of independence the condition of the dalits is same. Is there any chance of becoming a developed nation for INDIA?? Shame …
Comment by Attri — January 11, 2007 @ 11:50 pm
How shameful acts,now i don’t really believe in soakinig up this bullshit,my pack of endurance is empty.
Jurm karne wale se jurm sehne wala jyadaa gunhegaar hota hai.
I think the ball is now in our -THE YOUNGSTER DALITS’- side of court,and no one other than WE can chage the current condition in future.
To garv se kaho HUM DALIT HAI,HUM BHARTIYA HAI.
Be proud.Overwrite the trend.
Comment by shashank-I'm a DALIT — January 14, 2007 @ 10:04 pm
HI FRIENDS
YOU KNOW 1 THING WHAT WE EXPRESS IS JUST THAT WHAT WE LIVE. BY READING ALL THESE I BELIVE IN THAT THIS FILM IS ABOUT REALLITY THAT WHAT WE IGNORE ABOUT OUR SOCIETY N DONT WANT TO SEE, BUT ALSO DONT WANT TO SHUT IT DOWN.
WHEN WOMEN WRITE ABOUT THEIR STORIES OF BEING OR WORKING LIKE A SLAVE WE JUST REJECT THEM BY SAYING THAT “THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE” BUT FRIENDS WHEN WE SAY THAT IT IS JUST MALES ANGLE TOWARDS FEMALES.BY THE LAW CONSTITUTION NOW A DAYS WOMEN LEARNED AND BECOME EDUCATED, THATS WHY THEY ARE ABLE WRITE THEIR PROBLEMS AND THIS PROGRESS TAKES THEM TOWORDS LIVING AS A HUMAN WITH EQUALITY. BECAUSE THESE WRITING MAKES ALL HUMAN TO THINK IS IT LIKE THIS?.
U KNOW FRIENDS IF A BABY DOESNT CRY HOW CAN A MOTHER KNOW HE IS HUNGRY.
SO THE THING IS THAT WHAT GOOD EDUCATION CAN CHANGE IS THE GOOD LIFE FOR EVERY 1.
WHEN SOME LIVES HIS LIFE ON GROUND AND SOME ON TOP THE TOP PERSON NOT ABLE TO HERE THE VOICE FROM GROUND. THAT, WHAT KIND OF PROBLEM HE IS CREATING 4 GROND SO THE EVERY THING IS GOOD THIKS THE TOP PERSON. BUT WHEN THAT PERSON BECOMES IRRITATE N MAKE CRY 4 IT TOP PERSON WANT TO SHUT HIS MOUTH BECAUSE HIS SHOUT CAN MAKE TOP PERSON TO THE GROUND PERSON.
ACTUALLY WHY I AM SAYING THIS ALL? BECAUSE WE HAVE TO FIGHT 4 HUMANISM AND NOT 4 THE CASTISM
ACTUALLY CLIP IS NOT FALSE BUT I DONT LIKE IT CONSIDERING THAT BY THE 50 YEARS OF INDIAN INDEPENDANCE. WE HAVE TO SEE THIS 4 TODAYS LATEST…………………………….
Comment by KUNAL KALE — January 15, 2007 @ 6:07 pm
Unbeliveble.. I am ashamed calling myself as an Indian???????????
Comment by Prakash Kumar — January 17, 2007 @ 2:11 am
I am a so called Dalit by caste ,but i am equally treated by my counter parts may be because i lived my life in city but I am shocked and the video has brought me to tears when part of my community is living a down trodden lifestyle,I have been in best of convents and college and now live in USA ,I hope if there some medium or NGo through which i can support my people to live a btter life.Kindly let me know.
Thanks
Sreeni
Comment by Sreeni — January 20, 2007 @ 5:26 am
[...] http://www.shivamvij.com/2006/10/i-am-a-dalit-how-are-you.html [...]
Pingback by “I am a Monster, and I am Proud” — Robin Morgan « Women’s Space/The Margins — January 20, 2007 @ 6:56 pm
Film is effective . Something concrete should be done . Each one of us can create awareness in our own way .
Comment by Sudha — January 21, 2007 @ 4:58 pm
Hello Sreeni
Good to hear that you are willing to help. There are multple ways you can do that. I think if you help one dalit student’s education it will help his or her’s moarle to fight this evil system. $200.00 per year will do a lot in India. Thanks
Comment by suresh Kumar — January 24, 2007 @ 4:57 am
The government doesnt really care about anyone. The entire government machinery is only a neccessary evil. Dalits can come up only if they realise their strength. The progressive dalits and dalit sympathisers need to pool their resources and support the less fortunate dalits.
Comment by karan — February 2, 2007 @ 2:32 pm
This is the TRUE picture that is still going in many villages of “Shining India”. If anyone who think that whatever is shown is fake or not real, then i have nothing to say. But if someone think that this is true and need to stop this Non-humanity, let’s talk to me. I’m there to have the solution, help, assistance. Cause the feeling for this comes from your inside and none can generate it by any means. Hope u get what i means to say.
Jai Bhim
Comment by Satish — February 8, 2007 @ 4:39 pm
instead of going on and on.. is there any way we can track the girl who had to drop out from school and help her out ? please contact me if you know a way of getting the details.
Comment by sheshu — February 9, 2007 @ 7:06 am
truly sad. the way they get treated isn’t fair
Comment by Gabby — February 12, 2007 @ 4:13 am
I’d like to help that girl too.
Comment by Ranjit — February 12, 2007 @ 6:10 am
you are a loser who doesn’t understand what the problem is. you are an attention whore who wants to prove his humanity by compiling such videos.
simply there is no point in discussing these issues with ppl who have internet access as they are busy with their own lives and don’t practise untouchability. It’s rather the lower caste and upper caste villagers who indulge in such things.
Enough of dalit videos and articles, we don’t need thousand ppl who show that something is happening when we all know it is happening. what we need is action. do something to stop it.
Comment by ashok — February 12, 2007 @ 8:20 am
http://www.shivamvij.com/2006/10/i-am-a-dalit-how-are-you.html
Pingback by Amche Jen, Amche Bhasha, Amche Gharv — February 17, 2007 @ 5:51 pm
Most of us know the reality of lives of our dalits in India. Many Indians feel disturbed when they hear about the racism in the US or the apartheid in SA but we become ignorant of what is happening in our own backyard. Often the dalit struggles are not exposed to the world. We can be proud of our India and our country men and women only when we can see smiles in the faces of these dalits. Instead of cursing darkness, let us light a candle. Every little bit can make difference in the lives of our dalits. Then we can make India a better place for every one.
http://www.dalitsolidarity.org
Comment by Ben — February 20, 2007 @ 10:00 am
Some years back, the upper caste had one good reason to give phenomenon of conversion of dalits to other religions. Reason was, other religions are rich and can allure dalits to convert by offering money. Decades later tables have turned, world wide hindus are among the most succesful people in the world, so how many people now are going around to keep dalits in hindu religion back? One of the many examples of upper caste hindu bigotry.
Comment by Sicilian — February 25, 2007 @ 8:21 am
hi shivam,
i havent watched the whole video…my net speed is really bad so sorry…but will watch it in a while…but the comment here remind me of an incident at me in-laws’ place…there was this new maid we had employed and i went to talk with her…i was drinking tea and chatting when my sis-in-law came and saw me…she asked me to never do it again as it was belived that if you drink/eat in front of a dalit you develop a complete aversion to that thing…she went on to qoute a few examples where a similar thing had happened…i felt too bad for tht lady and that was also the time that i realised that such things don’t just happen in some remote village
i though about it a little more deeply and realised we have been doing this for a long time..for eg. we had seperate glasses, dishes for all the menial lobourers and i was always told its because those people live in shanties and there is very little sanitation and so may carry lots of germs and we may become sick…i never thought about in any other manner and now i do realise how wrong i was and how discriminatory even my mom-dad were.
there are a lot many things i have to learn yet and the more i read about these matters the more i feel i have been extremely unfair; but when i did it i was just a small child and didn’t understand what it all meant. maybe there are lots of other people like me who do all this because of their ignorance…and i just hope that they too realise how cruel they have been. and thanks a lot for sharing the video…its a real eye-opener.
Comment by neha — March 26, 2007 @ 6:37 am
@ Ashok
ignorant city-bred people (like me) who have been discriminating all their life without ever realising it can learn a lot from such articles and videos…and then we can spread the awareness through our family and friends and i have done so with a few of my cousins and in-laws just with the aid of a few frowns and discouraging words; i have even defied my ma-in-law by giving a ‘good’ glass to our driver…and always treating him as an equal. thanks to my ignorance again that she could never discriminate in front of me as i’d always pose her with the “whys” and “hows”
Comment by neha — March 26, 2007 @ 7:06 am
Hi! Strange. Indian leadership says”It does not Believe in Caste System”.So far so Good. Now, The reservations are based on Caste System!! The Indian Constitution uses Caste as a creteria for Reservation Vertically. Scavengers! How many know today “60% + of Scavengers are BRAHMINS in UP and Delhi. Most of the porters(Coolie) in Railway stations are Brahmins! The intermedetiary castes are opressing Brahmins and the Un-touchables in India and in Indian Communities abroad(Example: TANA,Telugu Aoosciation of North America,ATA, American Telugu Association). Opression of Brahmins in Tamil Nadu,Andhra, Karnataka,Maharastra,Bihar…Parts of UP…The people who realized that untouchability is a crime are the brahmins,they have accepted the fact 60 years back and have tried to get and work with the opressed.In return, they lost their wealth,position,jobs,pride…everything…infact,they got kinda assimulated into the Opressed classes and are now opressed,by the “opressed classes,muslims,christains and the other upper classes.Whats the solution. Demand a Brahmin land “BrahmaDesha”..infact Lord Brahma who is the the creator is not worshipped ..coz he is the father of all brahmins!! This is reverse discrimination. As far as Temple Entry…the Brahmins agreed 100+ years a go…its the Intermediatry classes.Stop harassing Brahmins,give them reservation and protect them as the Opressed classes have been.By the way,ALL the archaks in Jagunath Temple are Tribals and not brahmins…so dont blame the brahmins for the ills of the society.Its the powerful LAND LORDS(THAKURS,SINGH and RAJA SAHEB) who is blamed for all the ills of the Hindu Society.
Dhnyavaad,
Gurunath
Gurunath@gmail.com
Comment by Gurunath — March 26, 2007 @ 9:26 pm
Now,Neo-Buddhaism, Shameful! Is it an ism…socialism,marxism,classism..severalisms.shameful.Its Lound and Clear…”Bouddha Dharma”. Thats the rite word.I wish a discussion on this.Correct me if I am wrong. By talking of Buddism(Bouddha Dharma) and casteism are we not pushing..highjacking Bouddha Dharma and making it into a caste by itself? Is any SC or ST,OBC,FC(OC) leaving his/her Caste? Dalit itself has become a caste. Is educating the masses and instilling Dharma in them not the solution. Acadamic Qualification is not enough. Let bygones be bygones…Cant we all get together and instil samskars in a person.Cant we rediscover ourselves? Can not we all sit trash out the differences and build a New Bharat? How long will we all live in anguish? Its Lound and Clear. “THE POWERFUL WILL TRY TO ENFORCE HIMSELF ON THE WEAK”. Now,This is what Hindu Dharma wants to eridicate. Lets all sit together and make resolutions to a New India Lets create an enviourment where Merit prevails. .”Everybody is equal,with equal oppurtunities”. Lets all uplift the poor and disadvantaged. Jai Hind
Gurunath
gurnath@gmail.com
Comment by Gurunath — March 26, 2007 @ 9:40 pm
why do u just take some upper caste people and blame the whole community.these things only happen in villages where the people r narrow minded and do not wish to change themselves or their beliefs.i’d like to see stuff like this happening in cities.
if what u r showing us is true and stuff like this has been happening 4 ages , why dont u blame the govt for not providing enough protection to the dalits.after all these r the people who brought the politicians into power.so many killings and no action has been taken.even the woman in the end tells us that the govt doesnt do anything.
the girl tellus us how she’s illtreated by her classmates and the teacher doesnt do anyhing about it.what kind of people do this?what steps has the govt taken to improve this condition in the villages?
its the govts responsibility to improve the conditions at the lower level. u can blame some sections in the upper caste in villages that is.but u cant blame the whole community.people in cities lead a far beter life than those in villages.
first of all tell the govt to do something .and just dont bloody show some pity to these people over the net.do something about it.
Comment by rahul — April 7, 2007 @ 1:37 pm
I have come across this article, very interesting, that Dalits can rear male dogs in some part of tamilnadu???
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040726/nation.htm#4
Sucks
Comment by Sicilian — April 8, 2007 @ 5:49 am
Sorry , CANNOT rear “male dogs†following a diktat by upper castes.
Comment by Sicilian — April 9, 2007 @ 4:30 am
Maharashtra: Ambedkar’s statue desecrated
http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/apr/10maha1.htm
Comment by Sicilian — April 11, 2007 @ 2:09 am
its a heart touching vedio shoot .
sorry i cant say anymore …
Comment by sandeep — April 22, 2007 @ 5:39 pm
[...] System This is a very disturbing video - not suitable for a wek heart! http://www.shivamvij.com/2006/10/i-a…w-are-you.html when will we change! If we want the hinduism to survive and prosper, we will have to change it! - [...]
Pingback by Caste System - Forums — April 23, 2007 @ 5:01 pm
Another one I found,
http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=337515&sid=REG
Comment by Sicilian — April 27, 2007 @ 5:18 am
Caste Discrimination in UK
http://www.guardian.co.uk/india/story/0,,1812107,00.html
Comment by Sicilian — April 30, 2007 @ 9:01 am
Pride and self respect can only be gained through battle.
Civil war is the only solution.
Comment by Rebel — May 2, 2007 @ 2:54 am
[b]The you tube video link u sent me ..moved me >
I am Engg-Mkt in NCR based firm, did my BTech EE in 2006 from Pantnagar UK.
Socially ; wherever i see an opportunity to inform some one : may be in real life , to the person who works in my office toilet; or through internet , i try to inform/educate them of their rights, coz i believ knowledge is the greatest power they need, since afterall for their rights they have to fight themselves ; but with this weapon calle dknowledge ! and i m with them !
Comment by Pawan Gangwar — May 26, 2007 @ 12:26 am
I must say that the people who are sitting in planning comission should watch the condition of dalits not in the statictic wise but the real condition of dalits .One day will come and we hate the word “HINDU” & “HINDUSTAN”. Shame on you indians if upper caste people doing rapes with the dalit women in front of peoples & childs. nahin rehna aisa hindustan mein or nahin jaana aise hindu dharm mein.
Comment by Pankaj kumar kain — June 1, 2007 @ 9:13 pm
[...] ‘I am a Dalit. How are you?’ Published by Shivam Vij 8 months ago in Blogging. [...]
Pingback by ‘I am a Dalit. How are you?’ at National Highway — June 12, 2007 @ 7:25 am
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Pingback by But now, all my dreams are broken." - Sepia Mutiny — June 12, 2007 @ 10:55 am
Sorry to be so pessimistic, but nothing is going to change as long as our corrupt babus and money hungry bureaucrats run this country.
You talk about reservations. Do you know how many Dalits benefit from them? Almost none. If you observe today most of the reservation goes for BC/OBC etc, but look at a prestigious place like IIT/IIM etc and almost none of the SC/ST/Dalit reserved seats are taken.
To draw an analogy, consider what is happening in Africa. Countries like Uganda, Ethiopia, etc are in dire poverty and despair after decades of international “aid”. Why? It is the same as reservation. Aid does not help them one bit. Most of the money goes to their dictators or warlords. The people cannot stand on their own two feet and be self sufficient if we think aid or reservation is the key to everything.
Our politicians fail to address the basic reason why this happens: education and facilities. I tell you, it is ONLY by education and empowerment can the Dalits overcome their fate. We have treated our citizens like this for thousands of years. It won’t change tomorrow, or next year, or in the next 5 years. Reservation will not improve their fate, and it has not, for the past 60 years since independence.
The only way to save the situation is to radically change the system of government, incentive for corruption and nepotism in all levels of government. We can learn from a “totalitarian” country like China. Execute these morons who are mired in corruption. No trial, no leniency. Mandate by law, education programs and vocational training for dalits. Empower them to become teachers and professionals.
The caste system was a relic of 5000 years ago. People who still cling to those obsolete beliefs deserve to become obsolete themselves. This is a shame to our country and our culture. The best thing that can happen is to abolish the caste system and reservation by law. Yeah, great thoughts but I doubg that will ever happen during my lifetime.
Comment by Ajit Kumar — June 12, 2007 @ 1:22 pm
We can’t even stop min wage paid teenagers from asking us if we’d like frys with that.. until then, don’t think we solve other people’s problems.
It is important to see videos like this. Knowing is half the battle.
Comment by icecow — June 12, 2007 @ 2:54 pm
Dalits live in separate colonies in Ahmedabad
http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=88381
Comment by Sicilian — June 20, 2007 @ 6:25 am
One more I found of rural India..
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6061919203687283724
Comment by Sicilian — July 1, 2007 @ 2:57 am
Sorry for posting a wrong link, I lost the other link which I wanted to post :(
Comment by Sicilian — July 2, 2007 @ 9:27 am
This is very depressing and sad, untouchability needs to be removed.
My experiences of my village in Kutch India over 2 decades has seen a very big improvement in the lives of lower caste and dalits. This only happened because they got a good representation in the panchayat. However, there is a still along way to go. I remember lower caste coming to clean toilets in houses 20 years ago. Today the house owners themselves to it. This happened because of rapid economic growth where opportunities exist in other trades, like building and commerce.
Changing the mind set of the upper caste in india is a very big challenge. The only solution is economic enpowerment and education.
Because of untouchability in India, it only had one Ambedkar, imagine if there was no untouchability, India would have had thousands of Ambedkar and it would have made India a great power and nation by now.
Talking to a colleague of mine in the UK about this issue. He reminded me that only 80 years ago in England, Children were climbing Chimney of the rich and their families doing very dirty jobs, But economic and education changed all that. The class system is all but dead in the UK within a space of 100 years.
Comment by Vijay Hirani — July 15, 2007 @ 4:54 am
@Vijay
So you mean when India was rich , prosperous and “Sone ki chidya” untouchables were happy?
Comment by Sicilian — July 16, 2007 @ 12:41 am
Dalit land grapping case:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80dVoeudizI
Comment by Sicilian — July 21, 2007 @ 2:29 am
Paacho ungliya ek jaisi nahin hoti
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_XUqieobFc
Comment by Sicilian — July 21, 2007 @ 2:32 am
Postmaster reportedly indulging in discrimination
http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/26/stories/2007072658310600.htm
Comment by Sicilian — July 27, 2007 @ 5:23 am
hi this is video brings me at freedom agotime can u tell me what can i do for it i’ll do anything for this problem
Comment by sumeet — August 1, 2007 @ 5:04 pm
[...] Linking to This Video: 940 clicks from http://www.shivamvij.com/2006/10/i-am-a-dalit-how-ar... 778 clicks from http://www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/ 199 clicks from [...]
Pingback by YouTube - I'm Dalit, how are you? — August 3, 2007 @ 3:18 am
Till what time we shall suffer like this come to the fold of Dr Baba Saheb Ambedker GET EDUCATED, UNITE, STRUGGLE TO ATTAIN SELF RESPECT , SHED ALL EVILS OF SMOKING, DRINKING,CHEWING TOBACOO, MAKE YOUR OWN GROUPS AND FIGHT IN A UNITED MANNER , REFUSE TO COME UNDER ANY PRESSURE AND NEVER LOSE SELFRESPECT SCOME WHAT MAY . FEEL PROUD TO BE A NON HINDU. PREPARE TO RULE INDIA ONCE AGAIN. JANAK KUMAR.
Comment by Janak kumar — August 7, 2007 @ 12:33 pm
where are the Hindu Religions soo called saviors went?????
Where is RSS,VHP, Bajrang Dal??? where is Achariya Griraj Hishore , where is Bhai Praveen Thongadya? where is L K AdvaniJi???
Comment by Raj — August 8, 2007 @ 10:59 pm
I feel really sorry for the Girl..but nothing can be done..its few Uppercaste Idiots making the whole nation shamefull. Untouchability shud be abolished completely.
Comment by Mahesh — August 10, 2007 @ 6:03 pm
Atrocities on Dalit in wake of Mayawati gaining power…
http://pratirodh.blogspot.com/2007/06/atrocities-against-up-dalits-in-wake-of_17.html
Comment by Sicilian — August 12, 2007 @ 8:21 am
Dalits ostracised for defying temple order
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Dalits_ostracised_for_defying_temple_order/articleshow/2291635.cms
I dont know why they want to pray monster looking gods
Comment by Sicilian — August 24, 2007 @ 1:14 am
Dear All,
There’s no point in talking and hoping that things will change sometime. Its a shame that even after 60 years of “independance” we are not yet free. What’s stopping us, I ask to remove these barriers of discrimination? The answer is no surprise, its us…the people of India.
What can we do you may ask…start small. Stop discrimination in your lives, stop being a mute spectator when people discriminate. Stop asking your servants to clean the toilets…treat these people with respect…and think if you were in their position, how would you feel.
Its not too late to start, don’t hesitate to point out the wrongs, appreciate the rights…in a small way…
I believe and have faith that the day when we manage to remove the shackles of casteism from our own minds, half the battle would be won.
Make a difference…
Comment by Make a Difference — September 8, 2007 @ 8:44 pm
How could muslims be behind ??
Muslim students shun Dalit cook
http://www.india-newsbehindnews.com/mycgi/asianewsagency/editorials/article/426/12713.html
Comment by Sicilian — September 10, 2007 @ 10:03 am
Pakistani graduate raped to punish her low-caste family
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1707373/posts
Comment by Sicilian — September 10, 2007 @ 10:06 am
Backward Muslims protest denial of burial
http://www.rediff.com/news/2003/mar/06bihar.htm
Comment by Sicilian — September 10, 2007 @ 10:09 am
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Pingback by Polite Indian | I am Dalit. How are you? — September 27, 2007 @ 1:43 pm
Communal clash between Jats, Dalits in Punjab village
http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/6771/38/
Comment by Sicilian — December 4, 2007 @ 12:29 pm
Jai mulnivasi jai bheem
Dear sc st and obc people of India
Seeing these videos, shedding tears, feeling bad, etc etc will never solve any problem.
One thing is pretty clear. We are all under cast system, and caste system is a conspiracy of Brahmins.
The only solution to these problems is to annihilate caste.
To do this, all sc, st, and obc people should shed these caste identities.
These caste identities are not ours.
Aryans gave these identities to us, to divide us.
These identities are not giving us self respect.
These identities are humiliating us.
So all sc st and obc people in India should unite under a common name.
That name is MULNIVASI.
Mulnivasi is a hindi word which means aboriginal people and rightfull owners of this land, India .
So all sc st and obc people should call each other MULNIVASIS
Pass on this message all over the country.
90% of Indian sc st and obc people do not know a very very important thing.
All sc, st, obc, people in india, and people from these communities who are converted into various other religions like muslims, Sikhs, jains, etc etc belong to one blood and one race.
Arayns are none other than Brahmins, kshatriyas, and vyshyas.
These Aryans are foreigners. They are not Indians.
To believe this, we (sc st and obc people) should know our history.
Visit http://www.mulnivasiyouth.blogspot.com to know our history.
These Aryans are enjoying our country’s resources and made mulnivasis as slaves.
Mulnivasis should collectively fight for our rights .
Jai bheem jai mulnivasi
Comment by mulnivasi — January 12, 2008 @ 2:05 pm
Intresting articles on Dalits and Dalit empowerment
http://dalitnation.wordpress.com/2007/12/14/aishwarya-rai-a-victim-of-brahmin-conspiracy
Comment by dalits of the nation — January 18, 2008 @ 7:57 pm
God made everybody equal. how do i know this …its in the bible. Since this truth is not in the hindu scriptures means that God has not inspired those satanic verses that make up the hindu books. Search your heart and you will know that you have been lied to all along by the hindu leaders/gurus and hindu gods. The caste system is a religion to oppress people who are all made in the very image of god.
The countries that have equal rights for everybody got their idea from the bible because thats what god wants us to do…i.e. love your neighbour as u love yourselve. And some or you are talking about banning missionaries when these are the people who are at least doing something for them which is practical. And those of you who are oposing these missionaries who are doing gods will….rest assured that Jesus said the the comfort that you have now is the only thing you will ever have while those who are suffering will be comforted in the world to come.
India needs the truth about the creator God who has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Unless it does that it will still carry this shame to the rest of the world no matter how much it tries. You can’t hide the truth….the world wants to help this people and yet theres opposition from the politicians. what are they afriad of???
Comment by dn — February 1, 2008 @ 9:42 am
Dallits will come ruling like spartans conquered persians….
World will see the rising potential of the Indian Spartans…
No Tears, No Worries, No shattered dreams….
All Accomplishments…
It will be done….
Yes Lets Do it My Fellow Dalits……
Comment by dalit — February 15, 2008 @ 3:10 pm