62. Candy Dcunha

Abstract 62
Candy Dcunha                                                                                                       

Affirmation of identity in Urmila Pawar’s Aaydan, A  translated work:
The Weave of My Life: A Dalit Woman’s Memoirs

Abstract

       Urmila Pawar is one of the most distinguished writers in Marathi literature. Her collection of short stories Sahava Bot and Chauti Bhint are well known. The original title of her autobiography is Aaydan, which was published in 2003, and it received many awards. Aaydan is the Marathi generic term for the act of weaving things made out of bamboo. Pawar significantly compares her mother's act of weaving baskets to her own writing process. Through her writing she portrays a similar weave in pouring out her sufferings and agony.

       Maya Pandit translated Aaydan into English under the title The Weave of My Life. The translator’s approach to the memoir is very accurate in its affirmation of identity as a dalit /feminist writing rather than merely as a literary text. The quest for identity and recognition is powerfully described in the translated memoirs. The long journey from Konkan to Mumbai as narrated by Urmila Pawar, brings out her ultimate satisfaction and recognition in recounting three generations of dalit modernity. For long years, dalits were forced to live in isolated communities. Pawar not only shares her hideous personal tragedies but also takes efforts to play a vital role in the dalit movement. This brief paper is an attempt to show the affirmation of identity in Urmila Pawar’s autobiography which illustrates her sense of fulfilment when her efforts became an eye opener for many others.