Negotiating Caste and Community: Analysing Intra-Caste Rivalry and Social Stratification in Bama’s Vanmam

Bama Faustina’s novel Vanmam(Vendetta) explores the intra-caste rivalry among the Dalits of Tamil Nadu. Two Dalit castes Pallar and Parayar were instigated by the upper caste Naicker community to take political and social advantage of the situation. The novel also sheds light on the social hierarchy visible in village Kandampatti in which the novel is set. The paper aims to highlight the internal rivalry among Dalits that is exacerbated by the dominant castes in the village to maintain the supremacy of the upper castes over the lower caste communities and to systematically oppress them. This paper will also throw light on how both parties enter into a mutual agreement to their animosity.