Tall Order

In this searing essay, Shilpa Kamble writes about her mother – the hardships she endured, her fierce personality, and the life she made possible for her daughters. “Tall Order” is part of “Ambedkari Aai”, a collection of forty-one personal narratives about mothers, edited by feminist scholar, academic and activist,
Prof. Ashalata Kamble and Dr. Shyamlal Garud.

Shilpa KambleTranslated by Jerry Pinto

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Tall Order — Image via Wikimedia Commons

We all know, at least in broad outline, the life story of that extraordinary man, B. R. Ambedkar. Born in the military cantonment of Mhow in present-day Madhya Pradesh, Bhimrao lost his aai at a young age and grew up deprived of maternal affection, cared for instead by an aunt. His father, Ramji Sakpal, who retired from the army as a subhedar, remained deeply committed to his son’s education. Hoping to shield him from the brutal humiliations of untouchability, he sent young Bhimrao to Mumbai.

Even as a student, Bhimrao’s attention wandered beyond prescribed textbooks. Reading itself became his true education. One day, while sitting in a garden near Charni Road, he was noticed by Keluskar Guruji, who recognised the brilliance of the young boy. After Bhimrao passed his matriculation examination, Keluskar Guruji introduced him to Sayajirao Gaikwad, the Maharaja of Baroda. With the support of a scholarship, Bhimrao travelled to Columbia University for higher studies, and later continued his education in London, studying law and economics.

The knowledge he acquired was not for personal advancement alone. He used it to challenge and fundamentally rethink Indian society itself. He saw clearly how caste had condemned millions to lives of…

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Shilpa Kamble

Shilpa Kamble is an author, playwright and screenwriter based in Mumbai. She writes in Marathi, Hindi, and English. Her first award-winning novel “Nilya Dolyanchi Mulg”’ (“Girl with Blue Eyes”, 2014) is a story of friendship between two girls, one of whom has discovered Ambedkar, and the other has not. Her first play “Biryani” (2016), is a socio-political drama about the lives of two women, Sakina and Kurmuri. Abstract Theater (Pune) and Emperical Theater (Kalyan) have performed it across Maharashtra. The play was nominated for Zee Marathi Puraskar and received State Rajya Natya Puraskar (Maharashtra) in 2018. She has also written a One-Act play – “Chitrangada” (2018), based on a folktale from Mahabharata.

Translator

Jerry Pinto

Jerry Pinto is a poet, novelist, editor, and translator. He is the author of acclaimed books including “Em and the Big Hoom”, “Murder in Mahim”, and “The Education of Yuri”. His book “Helen: The Life and Times of an H-Bomb” won the National Award for Best Book on Cinema, and he received the Windham-Campbell Prize for Fiction in 2016.