Suddenly
if the sky sends a heavy downpour
you will gape in surprise, get drenched
I will spread my rug over my head
and beam like a lotus leaf on the ocean;
If you need fire in that storm
you'll stand on your head and do penance
to find a matchstick
I will produce my piece of flint
and a little cotton
and start a fire in an instant;
In winter, when you get the shivers
you'll roll on the ground begging God to save you
I use the the scissors from my Kammari* brother,
shear wool from my sheep
and weave a rug to wrap myself!
You grew into landlords from the crops
grown with my flock's shit
I offered you my sheep, raised like a child, for your feast
but you called me a crazy golla**;
You bania rascals!
Now I've come into the street,
my gongadi+ on my shoulder and holding my stick,
Now I shall watch over men not sheep
Now I shall fertilize the nation not fields
I''ll wrap my gongadi around this nation
shivering from your atrocities!
I can not only watch over sheep,
I also know how to cut down useless ones!
My translation of Kancha Ilaiah's Telugu poem 'gongaDi' (from the collection of Dalit poetry 'padunekkina paaTa' )
* Kammari: blacksmith.
** Golla: here, it means 'shepherd'. 'Crazy golla' refers to a popular stereotype, a negative trait (stubbornness etc) attributed to people from the communities raising livestock.
+ Gongadi: or gongali (pronounced gongaDi and gongaLi respectively)., rug or blanket made of coarse material (like sheep's wool).