Freedom From Caste: The Political Thought of Periyar E.V. Ramasamy in a Global Context

ended

This project aims to provide a systematized and critical account of the political thought of Periyar E.V. Ramasamy (1879-1973), a key leader of the Dravidian Movement in South India and champion of anti-casteism and women’s liberties. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, the research engages with primary works of Periyar covering a period of almost five decades. The project will augment the internationally recognized research undertaken at the University of Wolverhampton (UoW) on the prevalence of casteism in the diaspora with a view to consolidate intellectual tools for anti-casteism. The fellow’s interdisciplinary background and his nuanced understanding of caste will make him an excellent addition to UoW. The research will articulate a critique of caste, manifested in pernicious and resilient forms of hierarchical ordering of people resulting in the deprivation of basic respect and human dignity, compounding material disadvantages to those placed at the bottom of the hierarchy. The research will highlight the relevance of Periyar’s thoughts to global intellectual conversations on identity, feminism and social justice. It will build philosophical foundations of anti-casteism in a comparative, interdisciplinary juxtaposition of Periyar’s works with radical Western philosophers, political theorists and feminists. Thus, the research will open new possibilities of utilizing South Asian intellectual history and political thought to ‘decolonize’ the Western-centric academic practices of doing social and political philosophy. By holistically combining anti-casteism with feminist and secular agendas, it will strengthen efforts to combat caste-related injustices in the Indian diasporic community in Europe and the USA. The project will assist the researcher to gain a firmer ground in philosophy, enable achievement of an international standing as a researcher, expand his academic network and, thereby, establish prospects of an academic career in the UK/EU.