Shanlax International Journal of English

Captivating Tale of Resilience in Mari Selvaraj Bison Movie

Rajkumar G — 2026-06-01

Actors from all socioeconomic backgrounds now look forward to parts in movies helmed by Dalit directors such as P. K. Ranjith and Selvaraj. Ignoring these historical and modern realities and focusing only on the “fair” female leads in their films is part of an elite plot to subvert Dalit-constructed political ideologies. One of Mari’s films, Bison, subverts the conventional patterns, methods, and aesthetics of mainstream filmmaking to create a counterpublic discourse. The heroic depiction of Dalit iconography, symbols, gods, and belief systems is at the core of Mari’s filmmaking approach, and this is not an artistic limitation. In actuality, these stories contradict the long-standing use of epistemic violence in cultural representation in mainstream film.By titling the movie Bison, or Kaalamaadan, Mari Selvaraj is definitely undermining the sarvarna gaze. Based on actual events, the movie is set in southern Tamil Nadu in the 1990s against the backdrop of social developments. It is described as an intense and emotional film that uses elements of violence, Kabaddi, and social issues to tell a powerful story. It discusses the Dalit protagonist Kittan’s survival, tenacity, and victory. Selvaraj employs athletics as a motivator in the movie to help the protagonist move past this dilemma and toward more ambitious goals. This study examines Mari Selvaraj’s Bison Kaalamaadan by analyzing its plot, characters, symbols, and discussions about society and politics. It also examines how the film alters the typical production process of Tamil films by drawing on concepts from Dalit discourse, film studies, and criticism of caste-based culture. By looking at how sports, memories, and fighting back are used to show dignity and stand up for oneself in films that are against the caste system of which Bison Kaalamaadan is a part, the paper contributes to the conversation about how Dalits are depicted in films.

Reimagining Voices in Contemporary Literature: History, Humanity, and Ethical Representation

Abhijit Naha — 2026-06-01

In modern literature, the concept of narrative voice has shifted from being a position of authority to being an ethical response to historical trauma, displacement, and human vulnerability. Modern stories of history do not claim to be complete, nor do they claim to be able to recover it all.Modern history stories do not state that they are complete, nor do they state that they can recover all of it. These approaches demonstrate the challenge of portraying the historical experiences of pain, including colonialism, the Partition, and ecological crises. Narrative voice is thus an ethical field of responsibility: an area in which the writer recognizes that they cannot claim to represent anything absolute but rather must acknowledge the boundaries of representation. This is an alternative to dominant historical narratives, which can exclude vulnerable voices. In contemporary literature, memory, absence, and incompleteness are considered meaningful narrative strategies, as emphasized through relational storytelling. Ethical narration does not exploit suffering for emotional or political gain but rather engages with the experience of others. Humans are not a universal abstraction; in this context, they are a vulnerable and shared state of being that has been affected by historical violence.
The paper suggests that the reimagining of voice enables literature to hold onto contested histories and fosters “interpretive humility and ethical engagement. Thus, in modern literary discourse, the use of narrative voice has become an aesthetic and ethical means of expression.

Language of the Divine: Semiotic Transformations in the Shiva Trilogy and Ram Chandra Series

S. Gayathri — 2026-06-01

This article provides a theoretically grounded qualitative textual analysis of how Amish Tripathi’s Ram Chandra Series and Shiva Trilogy use semiotics, myth, and memory to create a cultural narrative relevant to the contemporary South Asian context. The study uses semiotic theory (Lotman, Barthes,) and structuralist myth theory, South Asian mnemocultural traditions as detailed in Cultures of Memory in South Asia (Rao), and Jan and Aleida Assmann’s theory of cultural memory to show how Tripathi’s character names (like Neelkanth, Ikshvaku, and Somras), symbols, epithets, and invented vocabulary serve as active semiotic nodes within a cultural hemisphere in addition to being decorative. These markers evoke inherited memory, such as ritual, lineage, and sacred cosmology, and negotiate the demands of modern sensibility, such as accessibility, moral complexity, and scientific metaphors. Through close reading of key passages of the novels, this study examines how myth is both preserved and transformed by citing how Neelkanth is repeatedly associated with poison, sacrifice, and wilderness, layering icon, index, and symbol, and how Somras blends Vedic ritual imagery with the trope of “elixir” to evoke both mystical and chemical semiotic registers, and how the archaizing diction and linguistic hybridization evoke mnemocultural inheritance. This article argues that Tripathi’s works act as memory spaces in the “Assmannian sense” and sites where collective memory is objectified and sustained through literature, ritual vocabulary, genealogical names, and narrative structure. Finally, the article argues that in the South Asian context, where oral tradition, genealogical consciousness, epics, and puraṇas have long shaped literary form, Amish’s semiotic innovations are a continuation and reinvention; myth does not become fossilized but is reanimated to meet the ethical, cultural, and aesthetic needs of the present.

Reclaiming the Self: Resistance and Identity Reconstruction in Anita Nair’s Lessons in Forgetting

M Vasanthamalar — 2026-06-01

This study examines Anita Nair’s novel Lessons in Forgetting through the lens of resistance and identity reconstruction. The novel explores the protagonist, Meera, as she embarks on a distressing journey of self-discovery and resistance against the societal and patriarchal structures that have shaped her identity. This exploration highlights Nair’s portrayal of female agency, memory, and the complexities of identity formation in patriarchal society. This paper investigates the novel in light of the strategies of resistance Meera employs to assert her agency and the implications of her journey for understanding female identity in a patriarchal context. She attempts to free herself from the clutches of tradition. Meera’s journey symbolises the tensions between societal pressures and individual desires, as she seeks to redefine herself beyond the roles of daughter, wife, and mother. Nair depicts Meera’s resistance as a multifaceted process involving remembering and forgetting as tools for identity reconstruction. Through her evolving relationships and self-absorption, Meera gradually reclaims her sense of self, challenging the patriarchal narratives that have defined her. Lessons in Forgetting presents an intricate portrayal of a woman’s struggle to reclaim her selfhood, offering insights into the complexities of identity reconstruction in the face of societal and personal challenges. This research will add and contribute a new perspective to examining the novel in the context of urban women’s quest for the self as they struggle with the challenges of a broken marriage and explore the possibility of second chances.