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Shailaja Paik grew up with her parents and three sisters, in a one-room house in a Pun slum. Her father, despite the challenges of poverty, gender, and caste discrimination, was deeply committed to education, which left a lasting mark on her.
Growing up, she was surrounded by stories of resilience and perseverance, but she also witnessed the systemic barriers that held people like her back — like her father being the first Dalit man from his village to earn a bachelor's degree. These experiences would later become the foundation of her life’s work. Today, she stands as one of the most influential voices in Dalit studies, recently becoming the first Dalit scholar to win the prestigious MacArthur Genius Fellowship, an $800,000 grant that’s awarded to individuals who show exceptional creativity and potential.
This win is monumental. Shailaja Paik's work is groundbreaking not just for what it says but for what it represents. She dives deep into the intersection of caste, gender, and sexuality in India, with a particular focus on Dalit women. Her research challenges the dominant narratives, shining a light on voices and experiences often overlooked. The MacArthur Fellowship, known for its "no strings attached" grants, empowers the author to continue this critical work with complete freedom. Her research has been a lifeline for our understanding the struggles and triumphs of Dalit women, who have long been sidelined by both caste and patriarchy.
Shailaja’s first book, 'Dalit Women’s Education in Modern India: Double Discrimination', is a deeply researched account of how Dalit women fought for educational rights in a society that consistently tried to exclude them. She doesn’t just present their struggle; she weaves it into the broader narrative of India’s colonial and post-colonial history. The book details the tensions between anti-caste reformers advocating for education and a society shackled by Brahminical patriarchy, exposing the double burden of the caste and gender discrimination that Dalit women have faced.
Her second book, 'The Vulgarity of Caste: Dalits, Sexuality, and Humanity in Modern India', delves into the world of Maharashtra’s tamasha dancers, women from marginalized castes who were sexualized and stigmatized for their performances. Here, she explores how caste domination and the male gaze have worked in tandem to dehumanize these women, while also examining their agency and resistance within this deeply oppressive structure. It’s a harrowing, yet empowering narrative of how marginalized women reclaim their humanity in the face of immense societal pressure.
What sets Shailaja apart is her ability to connect the dots between history, society, and personal stories. She doesn’t just research these women’s lives; she listens to them, often conducting interviews in Marathi, Hindi, and English and piecing together their stories to form a larger picture of Dalit resistance. Her work not only reveals how caste, gender, and sexuality intertwine to limit these women’s dignity but also highlights the power they wield through resistance.
In a country where so many of us still invalidate the oppression the caste system is responsible for, the MacArthur Grant is more than just a personal achievement for Shailaja: itt’s a victory for Dalit academia and an acknowledgment of the importance of these stories; of Dalit voices. She has paved the way for future scholars to explore these difficult, often painful intersections between casteism, patriarchy, as well as the class divide, and her work continues to challenge India’s rigid societal structures. Winning this grant is a powerful reminder of the transformative power of education, perseverance, and representation. A recognition of this scale will also put a spotlight on the systemic oppression of casteism, and the people who suffer at its hands.
