Performances
The Reserved Compartment: An Anti-Caste Love Poetry Showcase
Step into a space where voices that were long silenced, now echo with unapologetic power. The Reserved Compartment presents India’s first Dalit-Ambedkarite anti-caste English Poetry Showcase—a bold, community-driven revolution redefining mainstream culture through raw, resonant verses and intimate storytelling. Curated for hearts ready to listen and minds eager to shift, this evening at MAP promises to dismantle barriers and ignite conversations that linger long after the lights dim. Join us in honouring resilience, nurturing love, reclaiming narratives, and co-creating a more inclusive tomorrow.
Bookings
Dr. Abhijit Shahaji Khandkar, MD
Dr. Abhijit Shahaji Khandkar, MD is a medical Pathologist and an Ambedkarite-Buddhist poet based in Mumbai. Co – founder of the anti-caste poetry collective, The Reserved Compartment and the creative arts platform The Rhyme Republic, he is also a prominent spoken-word performer.
His poetry, rooted in the Dalit – Ambedkarite experience and Buddhist thought, has appeared in Bombay Literary Magazine, The Bangalore Review, New England Review of Books, Round Table India, Feminism in India, Outlook India, and the Indo-Italian anthology Bridge of Stories, among others.
As the co – founder of the Ambedkar Reading Circle (Mumbai), he advocates for regional literature, its english translation, and politically engaged art that amplifies marginalized voices. He believes all art is political and is currently compiling his debut poetry anthology.
Aleena
Aleena is a poet, writer and dalit feminist thinker from Kerala whose work explores themes of gender, sexuality, religion and caste politics. Her poetry collection “Silk Route”(2021) has won Kerala State Sahitya Akademi Kanakashree Award. Beyond traditional forms, Aleena is interested in pushing the boundaries of poetry through collaborations across different mediums, including auditory experiences, performances and music.
Gautam Vegda
Gautam Vegda hailing from Gujarat is an anti-caste poet, illustrator and research scholar from Gujarat. ‘Vultures’ (2018) is his debut poetry collection. His works appeared in The Bangalore Review and different poetry anthologies. He was invited to the International Youth Poetry Festival (for BRICS countries), Hangzhou and Beijing, China, in 2024 to represent Indian Poetry. He has taught a variety of subjects in India’s premier academic institutes like IIT Gandhinagar, NID Bangalore, NID Ahmedabad and Gujarat Vidyapith.
Daniel Sukumar
Daniel Sukumar a Bangalore-based poet and performer, Daniel uses spoken word to spark conversations around caste, mental health, and the politics of simply existing. His work sits in the living truths, the harsher realities of a caste-infested world, and turns them into verses that claw at something in you. Daniel’s poems are social commentary with a heartbeat: honest, urgent, and unafraid.
Shripad Sinnakaar
Shripad Sinnakaar is a writer from Mumbai. He did his Masters in Philosophy from University of Mumbai. His works engage with themes of slums, caste and migration. He is currently an editor at The Ambedkarian Chronicle.
Bharath Raj
Bharath Raj is a final-year M.A. student in Kannada Comparative Studies with a deep passion for writing, reading, and drawing. He is currently managing the script and performing in the play ‘Porakeya Haadu’ based on the lived experiences of pourakarmikas. The play is written by Du Saraswathi and directed by Lakshman KP. He has also written and directed a short docudrama titled ‘Case and Bobbin’ which portrays the everyday lives, struggles, aspirations, and social realities of women garment factory workers in Bengaluru. In addition to his academic and creative pursuits, he works as a part-time tattoo artist and charcoal pencil artist.
