Mysuru: Writer Kamala Hampana said that there is no need to organise a separate literary meet for women.
She was speaking during the inaugural function of the two-day Dalit Mahila Sahitya Sammelana, organised by Kannada and Culture department, Kannada Book Authority and Belaku organisation at Kuvempu Institute of Kannada Studies of the University of Mysore, here, on Thursday.
“In 1973, Akhila Bharatha Kannada Sahitya Sammelana was held in Mandya with Jayadevithai Ligade as the president. Writer Jayalaksmammani was the president of the women’s session of the sammelan and I had said that there is no need for a separate women’s session. I am for equality and I stand by my opinion even now,” she said.
“There is no inequality in the Dalit communities. Both men and women suffer all shame and pains together. Both work as labourers. Dalit men accept a woman with an open heart even if she becomes a victim of rape. Humanism is alive only among the Dailts. So, equality is the hallmark of Dalits,” she said.
“Folk literature is the foundation for all literature, including Vedas, Upanishads, Smruthi and puranas (mythology). While Dalits are the custodians of folklore, 90% of the folk literature trace their origin to Dalit women. They have kept alive the folk literature by singing them. So, one cannot say that Dalit women have not contributed anything to literature,” Kamala said.
She lamented over the erosion of the capacity and intelligence of women and also youth due to the addiction to television soap operas. “The younger generation, which has immersed itself in smart phones, has no knowledge about the ground realities of the societies,” she rued.
Former minister B T Lalitha Naik chaired the inaugural session.