Hail English, the Dalit Goddess!

The Dalit Goddess of English

The birthday of Lord Macaulay, the controversial British colonial figure who first advocated the use of English (rather than Sanskrit or Arabic) in Indian higher education, is not widely celebrated in India. For many Indians, Thomas Babington Macaulay deserves no less grand a memorial than Delhi's dusty, overgrown Coronation Park, the resting place of about half a dozen decrepit (yet strangely regal in their faded marble) statues of British imperial icons such as King George V, most of which have been stolen or destroyed. This is, after all, the man famous for proclaiming: "We must at present do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern; a class of persons, Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect." But the Dalit intellectual Chandra Bhan Prasad, who recently celebrated Lord Macaulay's 206th birthday with much pomp and spectacle at the Indian International Centre in Delhi, does not have a conventional view of Indian history.

The invitation to "English Day," Lord Macaulay's birthday celebration, written by Chandra Bhan Prasad, really says it all:

The mission of gaining freedom from regional languages begins with embracing October 25, the birthday of Thomas Babington Macaulay, as the English Day. On this day every year, we would explain our progeny how debilitating regional languages were. How long can we allow regional languages to restrain billions of minds from exploring secrets of matter and nature! Waste of brain power is a colossal waste the mankind can ill-afford...Humanity needs Dalit Goddess English for more than one reason. Universalism being central to the soul of Goddess English, English is a unifier. Regional languages, on the other hand, are quarrelsome and divisive.

Amidst much merriment, a mix of Dalit writers, poets, painters, and activists clinked their glasses of whiskey triumphantly, while a smattering of journalists, members of the British Council and intellectuals such as sociologist Gail Omvedt and social theorist Ashis Nandy looked on with a mixture of dismay and amusement. After a portrait of the Dalit Goddess of English, painted by Dalit painter Shant Swaroop Baudh, was unveiled, Prasad stepped onto a chair and began to speak to the completely packed room. He spoke of Lord Macaulay as a liberator who helped lower castes break out of the iron grip of Sanskrit and Arabic and explained how the British first let people of different castes study side by side.


Chandra Bhan Prasad heralds the Dalit Goddess of English

"We have several Dalit betrayers here," Prasad then announced proudly, introducing several successful Dalit businessmen by citing their something-crore annual turnover. According to Prasad, they had "betrayed" their traditional caste duty. Each was awarded a small bronze statue of the Dalit Goddess (made specially by Prasad), a Statue of Liberty-esque woman wearing a shapeless robe, a droopy sunhat, a pen in one outstretched hand and a computer with the Buddhist Chakra engraved on the monitor at her feet. The "Dalit betrayers" -- including 23-year-old manager of a plastics company Jeetendra Makwana, whose father once skinned animals -- were then finger-fed cake, a symbolic act reversing the traditional caste hierarchy and challenging notions of untouchability.

A series of passionate speeches on the liberating character of the English language followed. Dr. Bubek Debroy, a (non-Dalit) economist who regularly writes for the Indian Express, spoke articulately on Lord Macaulay and Indian education in English. "English is far better understood in India than it is in London," Debroy quipped, after quoting Horatius, whom he had first discovered at age 12 and whose texts had had a profound impact on his life. "When I look at this Dalit Goddess, I think of Bhavani, the Goddess of the Universe, and that means globalization!" he announced to cheers from the audience. Narendra Yadav spoke about how the Indian education system changed from Gurukuls -- religious schools -- to secular schools with the help of the British empire.

In perhaps the most comical part of the evening, the British empire itself -- or its modern-day representative, a tall, soft-spoken and confused-looking man from the British Council -- was awarded a statue of the Dalit Goddess, albeit sixty years too late. "Oh, it's very pretty," he said, cradling the Oscar-like statue in his hands and looking a bit helpless. "I've never gotten anything as pretty as this, you know... I've gotten trophies and medals, but this is really quite nice." His tone changed as he contemplated the book he had just read about the Indian Mutiny -- his first introduction to the bloodbath that killed some 100,000 Indian soldiers. "I feel as if I haven't done anything to deserve this," he told the feminist theorist Nivedita Menon, joking: "I've learned more about Lord Macaulay in the last hour than in the last 45 years of my life." Menon told him with a glint in her eye: "You represent the British Empire, anything that's not Indian, the not-India. But don't get too ahead of yourself," she teased.

Ashis Nandy, who has written much about the psychological harms of colonialism, offered his own perspective in a speech. "I am not a great supporter of Lord Macaulay, nor am I a great supporter of Chandra Bhan Prasad," Nandy, who has declined every invitation to Prasad's previous pro-Capitalism parties, said somewhat grimly. "There has been a great injustice done to the Dalits," he said gravely. "And I am fine with English -- I publish in English. But I believe that people should have the right to speak in their vernacular, to study their own histories, to worship their own gods," Nandy said, speaking of the richness of Dalit culture. But he ended his speech on an optimistic note: "I am very honored to be here, and I have just heard that Chandra Bhan Prasad has named his daughter Khushi, which means happiness, and overcoming the tears cried in past generations and affirmation of self. I think that is great."

While much of Dalit literature stresses the pain and suffering associated with being Dalit, Prasad's pro-English, pro-Capitalism voyage to erase Indian culture is perhaps the only Dalit movement that is full of optimism and positive energy. The Hindi language, as well as the myriad of other Indian languages, may have more nuances and may be better equipped to express the particularities of vernacular cultures. But to Prasad, English is the great equalizer, the language that only has one form of address -- simply "you" -- in contrast to Hindi's hierarchical three forms of address. And so, nuances be damned!