Draupadi: A Metaphorical Resistance through an Elegy of the Subaltern

Abstract

 Indian Literature is abundant in the projection of consignment of women’s servitude and inhuman treatment of men. It raises the voice of resistance against patriarchal oppression in society in order to emancipate women with dignity and identity. It also focuses on the reconstruction of womanhood which emphasizes on the reordering of social and familial relationship with financial undependability of women. The woman who is considered ‘subaltern’ can as well ‘resist and ‘speak’ when pushed to the ultimate margin. A particular concern for women and their issues make Mahasweta Devi’s texts great areas of feminist research. Two forms of resistance are displayed by Mahasweta Devi in her story Draupadi- first is in the form of tribal insurgencies and the second is acted out by Dopdi Mejhan who is an active worker of the Naxalbari movement and is haunted down and raped in an attempt to conquer revolutionary groups. This paper ventures to highlight the strength of Dopdi Mejhan who walked shoulder to shoulder in these insurgencies.