6 reviews for My Father Baliah
You must be logged in to post a review.
My Father Baliah
by Y B Satyanarayana
Description:
The extraordinary story of a Dalit family in southern India Key Feature.
The story of three generations of a Dalit family, told in an honest voice A rags to riches narrative; would appeal to lay readers as well as to those who want to know more about Dalit history and its success stories. The author is a well-known academician and champion of the Dalit cause.
About the Book: My Father Baliah Poised to inherit a huge tract of land gifted by the Nizam to his father, twenty one year old Narsiah loses it to a feudal lord. This triggers his migration from Vangapally, his ancestral village in the Karimnagar District of Telangana the single most important event that would free his family and future generations from caste oppression. Years later, it saves his son Baliah from the fate reserved for most Dalits: a life of humiliation and bonded labour. A book written with the desire to make known the inhumanity of untouchability and the acquiescence and internalization of this condition by the Dalits themselves, Y.B. Satyanarayana chronicles the relentless struggle of three generations of his family in this biography of his father. A narrative that derives its strength from the simplicity with which it is told, My Father Baliah is a story of great hardship and greater resilience.
About The Author
Dr Y.B. Satyanarayana has a doctorate in chemistry and was the principal of a leading college in Hyderabad for twenty five years. He is involved in active work with Dalits, and is co-founder of the Centre for Dalit Studies.
Skryf Review
“Good Reading”
Abbas
Sometimes Superstar Rajni can also help us discover great books! He is seen reading “My father Balaiah” in the opening sequence of Kabali. I decided to read it after coming across a news report about the book being featured in the film. It is refreshing to read a honest portrayal of a Dalit family’s history spanning three generations that stays close to it’s roots. Telangana region has always been a fertile ground for the artistic expression of the tales of the oppressed and downtrodden. This is a tale of a family that survived its struggles through feudalistic society plagued with casteism and came out in flying colours, thanks mainly to “The Great Indian Peninsula Railway”. Balaiah is the son of a Railway employee who left his ancestral village in search of a better life. This book portrays his life and his quest to give a decent life to his large family and educate his sons against all odds. Prof.Y.B.Sathyanarayana offers us glimpses of the lives of Railway employees of yester years with this immensely pleasant narrative. The reader shares the joys and sorrows of the Yelugati family through three generations. It does not feel boring despite being an account of a single family. It is rich with the cultural references of of Dalit railway employees during the Nizam rule and the post independent era. It was nice to see lots of colloquial words such as “Ayya”,”bidda”, “dora” woven in to the narrative to give the reader regional flavour. There is also mention of Dr.B.R.Abedkar in many places without making his message sound extremist. Most interesting thing about Balaiah is he wishes for the dalits to change their lives through the means of better education. Never do we see balaiah wallow in self pity beacause of his societal condition, at the same time he does not show blind obedience to the hierachical nature of the society either. He calls for his community to have enough self respect to lead their lives with dignity without being resigned to the injustice of the system. This book also mentions how the age old laws of manu start cracking because of the way in which employed caste Hindus start accepting the equality of all castes in the Railway quarters. There has been a great interest in the works of Dr.B.R.Ambedkar in the recent times across the nation. We find him being quoted a few times in the book. The book manages to give a message for societal change with out being revolting. This can also be read to gain an insight in to an important phase of the country’s modern history. Hats off to the author’s successful attempt to record his family history for the benefit of future generations. Must read for everyone interested in Indian social history. An important addition to the growing body of Dalit literature.
Jasmine
This is a rare historical record of a socially and financially downtrodden family climbs up the social ladder in a span of three generations through the sacrifices, determination, belief in education and discipline of the head of a family. A superbly edited book, extremely readable. Whether the author intends it or not, it is possible to read a dangerous message underneath the realitstic narrative – that private revolutions, personal decisions and sacrifices mean much more to social transofrmation than social, collective revolutions.
Hiten
Wonderful book! A must read for all the people who are against reservation! It shows the atrocities done by some people in the name of caste pollution and how the right to wisdom has been kept away from many people. This book is about a man called Baliah, a Dalit, who took education as a weapon to fight against social discrimination. The way he brought up his children, his sacrifice, his pride, his never die attitude, etc., really shows how much he wants to show to the world! Education came as a saving grace to many! If it had been made available to everyone instead only to a particular sect of people, India would have been in a much much better place now!
Kalgi
This book presents inspiring story of a authors family in Telangana from state of oppressed to independent, self confidence family through sheer determination to pursue education. More than a narrative, it presents an ethnographic account of changes that were happening in the country like the changes in railways, the changing urban landscape of hyderabad, the food habits of the family, the sanskritization process, the change in fortunes of the family across 3 generations.As the author says in foreword, this piece of work is intended to preserve their history to be read by future generations to understand the situations endured and sacrifices made by the the previous generations to give present generation their life.
Shrawan
A real-life story of a struggling Dalit family who considers education as the most important asset of all. This a really heart-melting story but the only weak-link is the poor characterisation and the way the story is spun around the lead characters. Overall, a good book and an even very good attempt to tell a family story in a simple way!!!