A marked life

A compilation of stories, some autobiographical and some fictional, details the agony of living in the shadows and the genuine challenges of breaking free from one's caste identity

Concealing Caste: Passing and Personhood in Dalit literature

Authors: K Satyanarayana and Joel Lee 

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Pages: 196

Price: Rs 1,895

Caste is among the ugliest and most stubborn stains on Indian democracy. It is reform-resistant and dehumanising and despite the abhorrent nature of its practice, caste still looms ominously over all aspects of social and political life in the country.

What does it mean to live in the shadow of caste, especially in a country that calls itself one of the most advanced civilisations of the world? It ends up negating the experiences of a large part of the population and