https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=JoothanJoothan - Revision history2026-10-24T18:05:38ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.6https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joothan&diff=506543&oldid=prevRajesh Ghosh: created the details first draft2026-01-24T19:37:29Z<p>created the details first draft</p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|Autobiographical novel by Om Prakash Valmiki}}<br />
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2025}}<br />
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2025}}<br />
{{Infobox book<br />
| name = Joothan: An Untouchable's Life<br />
| title_orig = Joothan<br />
| author = [[Omprakash Valmiki]]<br />
| translator = Arun Prabha Mukherjee<br />
| language = English (translated from Hindi)<br />
| genre = Memoir<br />
| publisher = Columbia University Press<br />
| media_type = Print (hardcover, paperback), e-book<br />
| pages = 208<br />
| isbn = 9780231129725<br />
| website = https://cup.columbia.edu/book/joothan/9780231129732/<br />
| english_pub_date = July 2003<br />
| published = {{circa|1997}} (Hindi)<br />
| image = Joothan cover.jpg<br />
}}<br />
<br />
'''''Joothan: An Untouchable's Life''','' or '''''Joothan: A Dalit's Life''''', is an autobiographical novel by Indian [[Dalit]] writer [[Omprakash Valmiki]]. First published in 1997 in Hindi, it was translated to English language by Arun Prabha Mukherjee in 2003.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sharma |first=Deeksha |date=2017-09-28 |title=Joothan By Om Prakash Valmiki - Book Review |url=https://feminisminindia.com/2017/09/29/joothan-om-prakash-valmiki-review/ |access-date=2025-08-05 |website=Feminism in India |language=en-GB}}</ref> The books describe his life as a Dalit, previously known as '[[Untouchables (caste)|untouchables]],' and their experience of pain, humiliation, and poverty through systemic [[caste-based discrimination]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Ronkin |first=Maggie |date=2005 |title=Review of Joothan: A Dalit's Life |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25075805 |journal=The Journal of Asian Studies |volume=64 |issue=2 |pages=504–505 |doi=10.1017/S0021911805001324 |jstor=25075805 |issn=0021-9118}}</ref> The title of the book is derived from [[Hindi]] word ''जूठन'' referring to 'scraps of food left on a plate, destined for garbage or animals,' that the lower caste was forced to survive on for centuries.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chandrachud |first=Dhananjaya Y |date=2024-01-01 |title=Reformation Beyond Representation: The Social Life of the Constitution in Remedying Historical Wrongs |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/48771787 |journal=Caste: A Global Journal on Social Exclusion |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=01–17 |doi=10.26812/caste.v5i1.2040 |jstor=48771787 |doi-access=free }}</ref><br />
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== Synopsis ==<br />
The text chronicles the journey of Om Prakash Valmiki, a Dalit who overcomes caste-based humiliation and poverty to become his village's first educated member of the Dalit community. The story is set in 1950s of post-independence India, where [[untouchability]] has just been outlawed. Beginning with scenes of dire sanitation and relentless harassment, Valmiki's narrative traces his adolescence marked by religious skepticism and public shame upon revealing his caste. His vocational training and discovery of Dalit activism, notably the influence of [[B. R. Ambedkar]], ignite his commitment to social change. Valmiki challenges inherited caste stigma through merit-based achievements and government employment, dedicating himself to uplifting others via cultural engagement and educational outreach, such as drama productions and opening schools. His memoir emphasizes the struggle for a self-defined identity and collective empowerment of Dalits.<ref name=":0" /><br />
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== References ==<br />
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[[Category:Indian autobiographical novels]]<br />
[[Category:2003 novels]]<br />
[[Category:1950 novels]]<br />
[[Category:Dalit literature]]</div>Rajesh Ghosh