'Sexual Objectification' of Dalit women in Kishore Kale's Against all Odds: A Study in Critical Perspectives

Abstract

As portrayed in Kishore Kale’s Against all Odds, the Tamasha folk dancers under the veil of artistic performance are sexually exploited. They are treated as commodities exploited by upper caste rich people. Their own community people support this practice for their monetary gain. The women thus are crushed by both internal and external patriarchy. They are forced to remain silent. Commoditization theory refers to the transformation of a human being into a commodity. When it happens, the commoditized person comes under the full control of the commoditizer. Naturally the liberty, individuality as well as humanity of the commoditized is lost. The commoditized is used to satisfy the commoditizer. The depersonalisation of women by depriving them of their human characteristics and individuality conceptualizes the forced profession of Kolhati Tamasha dancers as sexual object and not human beings. After being sexually exploited, these dancers are regarded as used and discarded objects. The stigmatized profession of these Dalit women labels them as ‘impure’ and renders them as unacceptable in society. The body of these dancers is for consumption by men. The abhorrent patriarchal society strips off their humanity and their identity becomes dependent on their sexual orientation. The paper will critically focus on the issues of sexual objectification of the Kolhati women as portrayed in Kishore Kale’s Against all Odds.

Keywords: Dalit, feminism, patriarchy, objectification, commoditization