A rebel writer if there was ever one, Devanuru Mahadeva has been conferred an honourary doctorate, but will he accept it ?
Devanuru Mahadeva is as famous for refusingawards or other kinds of recognition, as he is for his writings. He first rejected, in 1990, the government’s offer to nominate him to the Rajya Sabha. In 2010 he rejected the prestigious Nrupatunga Award instituted by the State government, that carries a purse of Rs 5,01,000. It was his way of expressing his protest against the government for not making Kannada the medium of instruction in schools and colleges. In a letter to the president of Sahitya Parishat he said, “When Kannada is being neglected totally in seats of learning, it is not prudent to accept an award instituted by the Parishat.” He further added, “Kannada in its own state is struggling to exist. We cannot keep quiet and accept awards in its name.”
Agrahara Krishnamurthy, former secretary of Sahitya Academy, says when the Academy wanted to confer a fellowship and pay Rs 25,000 per month for his works, Devanuru refused to accept both.
VC of Mysore University KS Rangappa once revealed that Devanuru refused to accept an honorary doctorate for his magnum opus Edege Bidda Akshara. Instead he suggested that Ragi Lakshmanaiah be awarded the honour for his extensive work on Ragi breeds. The university accepted the suggestion.
Finally, when the Padma Shri was announced, Devanuru didn’t go to Delhi to receive it. It came to hisdoorstep; then Deputy Commissioner of Mysore Harsh Gupta presented it to him at his residence in Kuvempunagar.
Eventually, he was conferred the Karnataka Sahitya Academy award and Sahitya Academy award. The Hampi Kannada University decorated him with the Nadoja title. He was also given the VM Inamdar Award at MGM College Mangalore.
Now, the Mysore University has announced an honorary doctorate for Devanuru, to be conferred on March 22 at Mysore University, by the Governor Hamsaraj Bharadwaj. We have to wait and see if Devanuru will accept it this time.
Dalit Swaraj What makes Devanuru Mahadeva special? His close associate, journalist and activist Agni Sreedhar, says, “Mahadeva is way above any sort of university or government honours.”
Born in 1948 in the Devanuru village, he was a teacher before turning farmer. Today he is at theforefront of the farmer’s movement in Karnataka. He is hailed as the messiah who brought in Dalit Swaraj. Devanuru has published only five books till now, but the influence they had on launching the Dalit literary movement in Kannada is stupendous. His works Dyavanuru, Odalala, Kusumabale and Edege Bidda Akshara are literary gems.
When he floated Sarvodaya Karnataka, a political party with the aim of bringing the haves and the have-nots, landed and the landless together on one platform, many called it “a captivating idea founded on a naive, utopian ideal.” But the party won six seats in the previous State Assembly election.
Devanuru stands for freedom, equality and fraternity.(Swatantra, Samanathe, Sodarathe). He felt, “the mining and real estate mafia will soon start bidding for legislators as corporate houses did for cricketers in the IPL.”
In a special lecture titled The Elusive Peacock – Devanuru Mahadeva and Dalit Imagination, Dr Prithvi Datta Chandra Shobhi of Manipal Centre for Philosophy and Humanities said, “Mahadeva is largely misunderstood. Though his friends and readers have tried to seek him out, the writer himself has remained elusive.” He describes Devanuru as “almost Gandhian. He advocates constructive programmes, similar to those of Gandhi.”
Yet Devanuru is not a recluse. His speeches are six to seven minutes long at the most, full of anecdotes. It is always a pleasure to speak to Devanuru because he connects with you. Hope he accepts the doctorate this time.
source: http://www.bangaloremirror.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Bangalore> Others / by Prathibha Nandakumar / March 15th, 2014