Notes by Alok Anant

Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand

Mulk Raj Anand was a prominent English writer of the pre-Independent
phase of India who wrote Indo-Anglian fiction. He was one of the first Indian
writers to accomplish International editorialisation. Through his writing skills, he
illustrates the vulnerable status of the society, the impoverishment, and
exploitation they face in transforming India enunciated as Modern India. His
perception toward oppression and deprived section is manifested through his
novels and short stories. He was one of the Dalit voice who wrote about the
vulnerability and humiliation faced by the Dalit people through his power of the
sword.
The Untouchability of Mulk Raj Anand is the first novel in 1935 through
which he attained enormous popularity and reputation. The novel is inspired by
the actual incident that happened with her aunt. The novel Untouchability
centred toward the deprived section of Indian society who were treated as
"Achhut" untouchable which are not to be touched by "Swarna Varga" upper-class
people. The novel demonstrates society's accurate picture through his character
Bakha a sweeper, Lakha head of sweepers in the area, Charat Singh and many
others. These characters exemplify the rotten and ruining orthodox tradition of
Indian society.
Mulk Raj explores all the hypocrisy and double-minded ideology of the
upper-class people. The way the upper class treated lower or untouchable people
is distinctly and unambiguously. The injustice, humiliation, oppression felt by the
whole community of the low or outcastes in India since chronicle were portrayed
through his characters like Bakha who was born with the fate of the unfortunate
and pathetic as he was untouchable.
His novel Untouchable typifies and presents the story of a Dalit boy
named Bakha who worked as a scavenger attain eighteen years of age living
with his family. He has a father, Lakha, a young brother Rakha and a sister Sohini.
Although they lived persecuted and in unfortunate circumstances with a sterile
environment. As the novelist connotation is an exhibit from a line "A brook ran
across the lane, with the manifest water which smeared by dirt and nastiness
 Notes by Alok Anant

sewage consisting fecal matter of humans, the unpleasant stink of dead animals,
slaughtered skins, left in the bank of the water body. The muck of animals like
cow, donkey, horses, and others consolidated to convert it into fuel cake, choking
and pungent exhaust fumes came from the sides. The drainage system's lacuna
submerged all the dirt into massive quaggy malodor inhumane to take a single
breath. This is the situation where the centric character of the novel lived in the
muddy constructed houses colony.
In this section, the paper keenly analysis the novel based on
untouchability and rotten conservative, inhumane and evil conduct prevailed in
every nook and corner of the modern society of pre-independent and struggling
phase of India, which is demarcated into the particular segment in the following
section-
Lower Caste Humiliation
The story initiated with morning scavenging; father Lakha forced his
son Bakha to work as a scavenger. He met with an athlete Havildar Charat Singh,
an autocratic or high-class person, and conversed with him. Charat Singh
promised to give him a hockey stick, a "brand new stick." When Bakha retired
home, he felt thirsty; the house did not have water to drink; thus, his sister Sohini
going to get water for his brother from the well and wait in the queue in the
corner as she was achoot and did not have a right to drain water from the well.
He met Priest Kalinath and said to her he helped her get water against a favor
that she had to come next morning for the temple's clearance.
Bakha went again for his swapping work; the Bakha felt hungry, so he
went to a shop and bought something to eat where unintentionally he touched
the upper caste boy. Subsequently, he bangs with Upper Caste Boy. At that time,
a Musmil business came and saved him from thrashing because they did not
follow any demarcated caste system in Islamic tradition. While wandering all over
in the town, he went to the house where he lay in front of the home, and then
the lady came and humiliated him why he slept in front of her door.
Simultaneously a wandering saint came, and the lady offered him food
unconditionally; at the same time, a lady offered him food to clean the baranda
 Notes by Alok Anant

of her house. An inhumane incident took place there too with Lakha, and he left.
Bakha went to Charat Singh, a man who gifted brand new hockey, a
generous man who did not follow the evil practice of casteism with Lakha. After
taking hockey, he went to play a hockey match where again he faced humility
when he goaled against upper-class boy fights during a hockey match. During a
game, a boy is injured, and Bakha shows her generous concern with that injured
boy and helps him. Bakha Carries him to his home, where humiliation is waiting
for him in the character of an injured boy who scolds him for the sake of help.
Double Standard of Upper Caste
Mulk Raj explores all the hypocrisy and double-minded ideology of the
upper-class people. The way the upper class treated lower or untouchable people
is distinctly and unambiguously. The injustice, humiliation, oppression felt by the
whole community of the low or outcastes. Double peaking characters like the lady
who cleaned the baranda, the Priest Kali Nath, and many more double-faced
people are prevalent in society who pretend hypocritically in front of the
community. One incident is portrayed by the Anand in which the Sohini, a younger
sister of Bakha, went to well to drain water; unfortunately, because she is Dalit or
achuut, she is not permitted to drain water herself. Priest Kali Nath came and
offered her water against work. She agreed as she needs drinking water
frequently because her brother Bakha waited for her thirst.
Very next morning, Sohini went to the temple to clean the temple
where the priest tried to molest her dignity when she became loud and noisy,
and the pilgrimage gathered. The priest's insincerity turned wretched and
blamed Sohini that she tried to misbehave with him and wanted to make him
"Dooshit."
Upper Caste with no Ego
The novel Untouchability centered toward the deprived section of
Indian society who were treated as "Achhut" untouchable, which are not to be
touched by "Swarna Varga" upper-class people. The novel demonstrates society's
accurate picture through his character. The Mulk Raj Anand effectively portrayed
the pretense of the community. Every coin has two faces in the same manner.
 Notes by Alok Anant

Society is endowed with the devil and evil figures, generous and meager people,
people who live for the sake of goodwill—in the same way as Anand, too,
portrayed in his novel characters like Havildar Charat Singh, a Hockey player, and
a Muslim man.
Both demonstrate the generous and humane conduct with Bakha like
they treated every other upper-class person living in the society. The novel
illustrates the story of saving Bakha from the Upper Caste when he
unintentionally touched the upper caste boy. Subsequently, he bangs a high-class
boy. At that time, a Musmil business came and saved him from thrashing because
they did not follow any demarcated caste system in Islamic tradition and treated
him kindly. He met with an athlete Havildar Charat Singh, an autocratic or high-
class person, and conversed with him. Charat Singh promised to give him a
hockey stick, a "brand new stick." Charat Singh, a man who gifted brand new
hockey, a generous man who did not follow the evil practice of casteism with
Lakha and did not do inhumane conduct with him either the characters which did
not demonstrate the upper caste ego for lower-class people.
Laziness
Bakha's father's character, Lakha, who is the laziest person who did not
want to work but ordered his son to work and follow the inhumane norm and
worked as a scavenger, lived a miserable life. At the beginning ofthe novel, the
novelist evinces the incident where Lakha pretended to be sick only because he
did not want to go for manual scavenging work. Moreover, the Lakha forced
Bakha to work and start the day with horror, humiliation, and an inhumane evil
cursing day.
Acceptance of Casteism and Fear
The casteism which prevailed from the chronicle and the rotten, evil
practice of the Indian society people used to see them from generation to
generation. It steadily became a civic norm and custom to be followed by every
upper class and lower class who are living in a society. This acceptance of the
devastating casteism is adopted and accepted by everyone who are doing this
discrimination proudly, caustically or those who miserably, vulnerable suffering
 Notes by Alok Anant

from this.
The Mulk Raj Anand illustrates this acceptance through his work and
incidence where the Sohini, his sister after getting molested and criticized by the
society as blamed because of hypocritical or treachery by the Kali Nath she
accepted the humiliation. She said to his brother Bakha that it is ok to go to a
home as we are Dalit, no one listens to our voice.
Lakha, when Bakha came home and told all the incident to his father
he ignored as he knew the ritual and evil humiliating custom which shows his fear
and acceptance of this dacroin system prevailed in Indian society.
Another incidence which demonstrates the acceptance and fear is
when the long humiliating and ugly events happen in Bakha life like being bitten
by the upper cast, humiliated by a lady and many more. He went to his friend
where he shared his day events a friend Chota in angered tone reply that we
have to do against such inhumane and evil conduct done by the upper class. Still,
his another friend Ramcharan interrupted him and said we are Dalit or Achhut
and it is a part of our life it happens with our caste, and if we go against this evil
practice the Upper Caste people will slaughter us so leave it and let's go home.
Caste Conversion
After living such a devastating and inhumane life, the Bakha was
frustrated and disappointed and wandering here and there and sitting across
the road lane under the tree. He found Colonel Hutchinson, who motivates him to
accept Christianity because Christianity is free from discrimination and casteism.
We treat human as equal and left together without demarcated as Brahman,
Kshatriya and Dalit or Sudhra and so on. He went with him to the Church where
he met Colonel Hutchinson's wife, who scrold his husband that every day you
bring some Indian as she did not like Indian at all, which Bakha heard.
Subsequently, Bakha left the Church and eventually, reached to a railway station,
where he hearsay that Mahatma Gandhi is about to come who promulgate his
perspective toward Dalit and pave the measure to protect their rights encourage
people not to follow inhumane and evil custom.
End of Untouchable Speech by Mahatma Gandhi
 Notes by Alok Anant

Bakha waited in the Railway station for the Mahatma Gandhi who
came and enunciated his vision toward the decorin custom and vulnerability
widely spread in the community through his speech. He found some relief after
hearing the Mahatma Gandhi vision toward egalitarian grounds for all India
where belonging from any caste, creed, gender will highly emphasize
untouchability. As Gandhiji, in the pre Independence phase wandering the nation
to aware the mass regarding his ideology to attain Independence which was
highly based on Non-violence, satyagraha. Along with this Gandhiji started a
movement for "Harijan Seva" where he enthusiastically encourage the mass to
denounce the evil practice against Dalit and treat them equally as he pronounces
Dalit and Harijan" Hair (god's) Jan (man).
These encouraging visions calm the soul of the Bakha, and he got
some positive vibes that the time will, fortunately, transform his and his
community deterioration conditions. In the railway station only he also listens that
Britain Government near to bring a scavenger machine which eventually
renounces manual scavenging and the Bakha thought after that machine we
Dalit will become curse free forever. As he believed because of this inhumane
sewage or scavenging work, we are not acceptable and became
As the Mulk Raj Anand, one of the eminent and prominent novel and
story writers wrote on such an intense topic which prevailed in the then society
only because he wanted to transform the oppressive, devastating custom
prevailed in every nook and corner of our country. Through inventiveness skills,
fictitious and seemingly indulged in the denuded enunciation of society's social
and ethnic fabric. He was one of the Dalit voice who wrote about the vulnerability
and humiliation faced by the Dalit people through his power of the [Link]
in society.