Madara Chennaiah Explained

Madara Chennaiah belonged to chambhar (chamar) caste. He was an 11th-century-CE Kannada great vachana poet and saint. He is widely regarded as the first Vachanakara in India who lived in the reign of Western Chalukyas.

Further reading

• Satyanarayana, K & Tharu, Susie (2011) No Alphabet in Sight: New Dalit Writing from South Asia, Dossier 1: Tamil and Malayalam, New Delhi: Penguin Books.
• Satyanarayana, K & Tharu, Susie (2013) From those Stubs Steel Nibs are Sprouting: New Dalit Writing from South Asia, Dossier 2: Kannada and Telugu, New Delhi: HarperCollins India.

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