FROM PAMPHLETS TO PUBLIC SPHERE: DALIT PRINT CULTURE AND INTELLECTUAL MOBILIZATION IN UTTAR PRADESH (1920-1980)

This study examines the historical emergence and growth of Dalit print culture in Uttar Pradesh, focusing on how pamphlets, newspapers, magazines, and grassroots publishing initiatives collectively forged a distinct Dalit public sphere. Beginning in the 1920s with Swami Acchutanand and fellow Dalit intellectuals, independent printing presses were established to challenge the upper-caste dominance of knowledge production. Figures like Babu Ramcharan, Hariprasad Tamta, Jatavaveer Manikchand, Chandrika Prasad Jigyasu, and Lalayee Singh Yadav institutionalised Dalit literary output by founding presses and periodicals, demonstrating the potential of print culture to spark political awakening among marginalised communities. The paper highlights the post-independence expansion of Dalit print, especially through small-town and rural centers. The emergence of a "popular booklet culture"—inexpensive, mission-driven publications—was vital in consolidating political consciousness and providing alternative histories and identities. Movements such as Ravidasi, Kabirpanthi, and Buddhism further enriched this print culture's ideological base. Despite economic hardship, poor-quality materials, and limited distribution, Dalit authors persisted, circulating texts through alternative networks rooted in caste solidarity and activism. Ultimately, the study argues that Dalit print culture went beyond literature, functioning as a transformative intellectual intervention that democratized knowledge and reshaped the public life of Uttar Pradesh.