Volume 2 - Issue 2, March - April 2026

This paper looks closely at the poetry of four major Dalit writers—Namdeo Dhasal, Hira Bansode, Meena Kandasamy, and Sukirtharani—to understand how they turn the pain of caste-based oppression into something that is not just personal but political, not just raw but artful. The argument here is that their work does more than simply describe suffering. It functions as what might be called "lyrical testimony"—a way of bearing witness that pushes back against the stories that caste society tells about itself. Through a careful reading of their poems, the paper traces the themes that run through their work: the body as a site of violence and resistance, the struggle for space and dignity, the rewriting of religious and social symbols, and the use of anger as something that is both aesthetically valid and politically necessary. What becomes clear is that while these poets share a common ground in their resistance to caste, their approaches are shaped by where and when they write, what language they choose, and how they understand gender. Dhasal writes from the gut, giving voice to the chaos of urban poverty. Bansode captures the particular grief of a Dalit woman caught between caste and patriarchy. Kandasamy meets centuries of hierarchy with a sharp, English-language wit. Sukirtharani insists, in Tamil, that a Dalit woman's desire belongs to her. The paper closes by suggesting that these poets are doing something more than adding new voices to Indian literature. They are rethinking what literature is for—showing that for those who have been pushed to the edges, writing can be an act of liberation.

Mr.Atul Santosh Jadhav,"The Wound and the Lyric: A Study of Four Dalit Poets" International Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Research and Educational Development, V2(2): Page(1047-1051) Mar-Apr 2026. ISSN: 3107-6513. www.ijamred.com. Published by Scientific and Academic Research Publishing.