Adhavan Deetchanya (born 1964) is a Tamil writer of poetry and short fiction. Since his first book, Purathirunthu (1996), he has published three collections of poetry: Poojjiyatthilirunthu Thuvanum Aattam (2003), Thanthugi (2005) and Adhavan Deetchanya Kavithaigal (2011). He is also editor of the magazine Pudhuvisai. Born and raised in Utthamachozhapuram, near Salem, he works currently as a cashier in Hosur in the state of Tamil Nadu.
And yet, even if there is an apparent change in ethos – as tamarind seasons and harvests give way to the new urban township – some social realities aren’t levelled out so easily. What makes Ambedkar colony any different from its counterparts? Why does it sell for a pittance, despite its convenient location just a stone’s throw away from the bus stop? The difference is slyly evoked through a litany of names of major political leaders (in which entire political histories and caste backgrounds are encoded): Gandhi, Anna, Kamaraj.
Thus there is no overt statement about Dalit politics in the poem until it reaches the last line of biting irony: “Even land has a caste”.
Bibliography
Adhavan Deetchanya Kavithaigal, Sandhya Publications, Chennai, 2011
Thanthugi, Sandhya Publications, Chennai, 2005
Poojjiyatthilirunthu thuvangum Aattam, Sandhya Publications, Chennai, 2003
Puratthirunthu, Tamilnadu Progressive Writers Association, Hosur, 1996