One of the tallest figures in Kannada literature, Devanuru Mahadeva has created ripples in the State dogged by communal polarisation and headed for Assembly elections next year, with his new book RSS: Aala Mattu Agala (RSS: It’s Depth and Width ). The 64-page book has sold 1.02 lakh copies in less than a month. With the writer partly giving up royalty, the book has so far been brought out by 30 publishers in Kannada, and is all set to be translated into five languages — Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi and English.
A prominent Dalit voice, the 74-year-old Mysuru-based writer uses his characteristic style of parables and metaphors to “catch the pulse” of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and communicate in a simple language the nature of the organisation, its objectives and agenda. Unsurprisingly, the book has also attracted strong counters, with a series of articles criticising the book published on the front page of a newspaper affiliated to the RSS. Mahadeva is undeterred and says he’ll continue his project of countering “hate and lies”. Excerpts from an interview:
