Pothikkettu is a monthly editorial that ‘wraps up’ the issue for our readers.
Hello Readers,
In Kerala, popular interpretations of modern history frequently highlight the several male leaders who spearheaded the fight for social justice. In order to shed emphasis on the leadership of women in the fight for caste and gender justice, Naveen highlights lesser-known instances from these conflicts. While mentioning incidents such as The Paliyam struggle (1947-1948), the Kuttamkulam struggle (1946) and the Pariyarath strike in the 1960s. Naveen also points out the individuals who worked with different organisations in Kerala such as the Pulaya Mahasabha and the Communist Party, which helps the reader to understand the interconnections between social movements in Kerala. The article sheds light on many notable Dalit women whose names are neglected in many narrations of the historical movements such as Kallumala struggle. Naveen’s attempt recasts how Dalit women’s role in the Renaissance is popularly portrayed. In a similar vein, you can also revisit Athira Prasenan’s article on the Vaikom sathyagraham which attempts to shed light on the names of its unsung heroes from Dalit origins.
In the article ‘“Scene contra, mone!” Changing Language and Selves in Malayalam’, Akhila Krishan delves deeply into the realm of new Malayalam idioms and coinages. The rise of new Malayalam terms has sparked an intense debate about the language’s future, particularly among older audiences and academic circles about its purported ‘compromise’. The older generations are displaying excessive worry over Gen Z abandoning Malayalam reading and writing, and this tension is typically a result of our time’s technological improvements. Akhila demonstrates how these new terms go beyond linguistic shifts; these changes, which are implemented to introduce relatability and cultural affinity, show how globalized English idioms are being recontextualized in regional cultural contexts. While we are on the topic of the new generation, take a look at Ahnas Muhammed’s commentary on how new malayalam cinema is representing Malabar and its cultural elements, including language. Ahnas’s piece in an earlier issue can help us see how such changes in popular language are influenced and mediated by Kerala’s internal cultural diversity as much as globalised English idioms.
Until next month,
The Ala Team
