We are pleased to announce that an anthology published by the KTU Publishing House Technologija was launched in Kolkata, India on 22 January 2024. The book titled Trauma, Protest, Transcendence: Voice of a Bengali Dalit Playwright was edited by Dr. Runa Chakraborty Paunksnis, who teaches at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities, Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania. It contains 4 plays in translation, an introduction by the editor and two interviews compiled and edited by the editor. The anthology focuses on the caste system in India, the origin and development of Dalit literature, especially Bengali Dalit literature, and the plays of a Bengali Dalit playwright-activist Raju Das. It makes a significant contribution to the existing research since scholarly knowledge on Dalit literature is still scarce.
The book launch was organized by the Department of Comparative Indian Languages and Literatures (CILL), University of Calcutta, India. It was attended by eminent Dalit writers and activists Raju Das and Namita Das who officially inaugurated the event. The entire programme was chaired by the Head of CILL, Prof. Mrinmoy Pramanick. In addition to the students and the faculty members of CILL, the programme was attended by many scholars and students from various other universities. Dr Chakraborty Paunksnis delivered a lecture on Dalit feminist assertions in Dalit women’s writings, and the event was concluded with a lively interactive session on Dalit literature, caste-politics and the Future directions of research.
