The history of dalit periodicals is deeply intertwined with the broader struggle for social justice and emancipation of dalits in India. Emerging as critical platforms for resistance, these periodicals have evolved from print to digital media, reflecting the ongoing sociopolitical movements within the community. The first known dalit journal, Sooryothayam, was published in Tamil in 1869, followed by Dinbandhu (1877) in Marathi. Dr B. R. Ambedkar, a pivotal figure in dalit activism, spearheaded dalit journalism by founding Mooknayak (1920), Bahishkrit Bharat (1927), Janata (1930) and Prabuddha Bharat (1956). Concurrently, reformers like E. V. Ramasamy Periyar, Swami Achhutanand and Bhagya Reddy Varma contributed through their own publications across various Indian languages. The dalit Panther movement in the 1970s catalysed the rise of ‘little magazines’, which became essential outlets for dalit literature and activism. Today, dalit journalism continues to thrive in digital spaces, ensuring sustained discourse on caste discrimination and social justice. This article chronicles the historical trajectory and transformation of dalit periodicals in India, providing a comprehensive list of such publications. Based on the secondary sources, this article lists 193 periodicals related to dalits.
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BhechainS. S. (2010). Samkalin Hindi patrakarita me dalit uvach. Anamika Publishers & Distributors.
8.
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BrueckL. R. (2008). Mainstreaming marginalized voices: The Dalit Lekhak Sangh and the negotiations over Hindi Dalit Literature. In BhagwanM. & FeldhouA. (Eds.), Claiming power from below: Dalits and the subaltern question in India (pp. 151–166). Oxford University Press.
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BuddhapriyaD. B. (2017). Swami Acchutanand. In DasA. (Ed.), Dalit Dastak (pp. 17–18).
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ByapariM., & MukherjeeM. (2007). Is there dalit writing in Bangla?Economic & Political Weekly, 4116–4120.
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DangleA. (1992). Poisoned bread: Translation from modern Marathi Dalit literature. Orient Longman.
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JangamC. (2017). Dalits and making of modern India. Oxford University Press.
25.
KaurR. (2017). Ambedkarwadi parampara mein hindi dalit patrakarita sithiyan aur sambhavanye. Department of Hindi, University of Delhi. http://hdl.handle.net/10603/368426
26.
KshirasagaraR. (1994). Dalit Movement in India and its leaders, 1857–1956. Prints Publications Pvt Ltd.
27.
KothariR. (1998). Rise of the dalits and the renewed debate on caste. In ChatterjeeP.(Ed.), State and politics in India (pp. 439–458). Oxford University Press.
28.
KumarV. (2005). Dalits in Indian sociology. Sociological Bulletin, 54(3), 514–532.
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KumarR. (2007). Dalit literature: A perspective from below. In AhmadI. & UpadhyayS. B. (Eds.), Dalit assertion in society, history, and literature (pp. 129–141). Deshkal Publication.
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KumarN. V. (2013). Remembering Dalit Murasu, a voice of Dalits, by Dalits, for Dalits. https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2013/Apr/13/remembering-dalit-murasu-a-voice-of-dalits-by-dalits-for-dalits-467470.html
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MangalamH. (2018). Gujarati Dalit literature and commitment. In SonkerS. K. (Ed.), Assertion and its space in literature (pp. 251–277). Yash Publishers & Distributors.
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MichaelS. (2007). Introduction. In MichaelS. (Ed.), Dalits in modern India: Vision and values (2nd ed., pp. 13–44). Sage Publications.
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PawarU. (2005). In Memoriam Meenakshi....... Quiet and simple. In RegeS. (Ed.), Yet a powerful personality (pp. 8–10). Indian Association of Women’s Studies Newsletter.
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PolP. (2022). The journalistic legacy of B.R. Ambedkar, the Editor. https://janataweekly.org/the-journalistic-legacy-of-b-r-ambedkar-the-editor/
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RajshekarV. T. (2016). What is “Dalit” and “Dalitism?”. https://drambedkarbooks.com/2016/11/10/what-is-dalit-and-dalitism/
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RamC. (2017). Hindi Ki dalit patrakarita ek alochnatmak adhyayan. Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Bihar University. http://hdl.handle.net/10603/439212
44.
SatyanarayanaK. (2006). The dalit reconfiguration of modernity: Citizens and castes in the Telugu public sphere. In RawatR. S. & SatyanarayanaK. (Eds.), Dalit studies (pp. 155–179). Duke University Press.
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SherrifK. (1994). Gujarati dalit literature: An overview. In Indian literature (pp. 9–11).
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ShridharS. N. (2023). Architects of a literary revolution: Unpacking the Dalit Panther & little magazine movements. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJRmLZUQ9sE
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Suresh KumarC., & SubramaniR. (2014). Internet as an alternative media for Dalits in India: Prospects and challenges. IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), 19(2), 125–129.
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ThubeS. (2023). Dinbandhu and Dinmitra. https://revolutionarypapers.org/teaching-tool/dinbandhu-and-dinmitra/
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WankhedeH. S. (2024). From Panthers to political dalits: Revisiting the legacy of dalit panthers in India. CASTE: A Global Journal on Social Exclusion, 5(3), 393–409. https://doi.org/10.26812/caste.v5i3.693
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YengdeS. (2020). Ambedkar ke pahle akhbar ‘Mooknayak’ ke sau sal aur dalit patrakarita. www.bbc.com/hindi/India-51301513
