In these analytical writings, Mythily uncovers the issues at heart - an incident that was portrayed as a simple wage issue between communist and non-communist farmers that resulted in the violence, was, in fact, the result of a class struggle that had been brewing in the region. The writings make up for the memory loss: details about the Kilvenmani incident and her visit are filled in with two essays in the book that was released in New Delhi last week. Geetha, and activist and professor, Kalpana Karunakaran. Haunted by Fire: Essays on Caste, Class, Exploitation and Emancipation, compiled by writer and historian V. Some of those important writings (1969-late ‘90s) are now part of a collection titled They have interviewed those who knew her closely extensively, and more recently, shed the dust off copies of her writings, scattered throughout the house in Chennai to recover the written word. As the film,įragments of the Past, advances, the spirit of the activist and thinker comes through in several poignant moments, as she struggles against Alzheimer’s disease that continues to blur her memory.īut where individual memory has failed, there’s some comfort in collective memory: family, friends and fellow activists have stepped in to archive the life and times of the 74-year-old celebrated trade union and women's rights activist, who was also the vice-president of the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA).
“You know, this is called memory loss!” she says in the film, displaying a candour that seems rather characteristic of the spirited activist. More than three decades later, however, she is having trouble recounting details. The incident was also a moment of political transformation for the young activist who had just returned from a stint in the U.S. Mythily had visited the site of the killings her essays about the class struggle in the region had brought the issue on the international map. But Mythily, once an active member of the CPI (M), a prominent trade union activist with the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) and one of the co-founders of the Democratic Women’s Association in Tamil Nadu, is struggling to recall the details.
They are discussing the Kilvenmani incident: the brutal killings of Dalit agricultural labourers in Tamil Nadu’s Thanjavur district that took place in 1969. The opening scene of a film on her life and activism is also one of its more poignant ones: Mythily Sivaraman, a prominent political and social activist in Tamil Nadu is in conversation with filmmaker and historian Uma Chakravarti.
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