Abstract
In "Man, You Should Explode", marginalisation is not treated as an abstract social problem but as a brutal, everyday reality. The poem reflects how caste operates as an invisible yet omnipresent force that denies Dalits dignity, humanity, and agency. Dhasal’s language mirrors the chaos and cruelty of this exclusion, rejecting polished aesthetics in favour of a style that itself resists literary marginalisation.
References
Ambedkar, B. R. Annihilation of Caste. 1936. Navayana, 2014.
Dangle, Arjun, ed. Poisoned Bread: Translations from Modern Marathi Dalit Literature. Orient Longman, 1992.
Dhasal, Namdeo. Golpitha and Other Poems. Translated by Dilip Chitre, Navayana, 2007.
Guru, Gopal. Humiliation: Claims and Context. Oxford University Press, 2009.
Rege, Sharmila. Writing Caste / Writing Gender: Narrating Dalit Women’s Testimonios. Zubaan, 2006.
Zelliot, Eleanor. From Untouchable to Dalit: Essays on the Ambedkar Movement. Manohar, 1992.