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Abstract
Education remains a manifesto where culture, language, and communication are reflected and produce fresh, broader social inequalities. Through the lens of two South Indian novels - When the Kurinji Blooms by Rajam Krishnan and Bride in the Hills by Kuvempu - this paper explores how characters’ language and culture influence systematic inequities. Dominant didactic teaching models often reproduce hierarchies of language, caste, class, gender, and ethnicity. Ultimately, it calls for a reimagination of education not just as a transfer of knowledge, but as a means to embrace diversity, challenge systematic inequities, and recognize education as a way to nurture inclusive and equitable human consciousness. This paper is an attempt to critically examine the themes of cultural identity, community, and tradition while closely studying the conflict between modernity and tradition in current society, debriefing communication for inclusive and equitable pedagogy.
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References
- Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black Feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1989(1), 139–167. https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/vol1989/iss1/8
- The Federal. (2024, October 18). Kuvempu’s novel, Bride in the Hills, limns his cosmic vision of universal man. https://thefederal.com/category/features/kuvempus-novel-bride-in-the-hills-illustrates-his-cosmic-vision-of-universal-man-151110
- Gayathri, S. (2021). A study of cultural aspects of tribal society through the novel "When the Kurinji Blooms" by Rajam Krishnan. International Journal of English and Studies, 3(7), 198-202. https://www.ijoes.in/papers/v3i7/21.IJOES-Gayathri%20S(198-202).pdf
- Gundur, N. S. (2025, August 1). Bride in the Hills: A Kuvempu magnum opus for the English reader. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/books/book-review-bride-in-the-hills-author-kuvempu-translation-vanamala-viswanatha/article69862716.ece
- Jinu, R., & Suganth, R. S. (2019). A portrait of ruined and devastated tribal life in Rajam Krishnan’s When the Kurinji Blooms. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 8(1C2), 1076–1078. https://www.ijrte.org/portfolio-item/a11860581c219/
- Kavimani, N., & Chandrasekar, R. (2024). The impact of displacement on tribal communities: A reading of Rajam Krishnan's When the Kurunji Blooms through Michael M. Cernea's Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction Model. International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research, 6(2), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2024.v06i02.16647
- Krishnan, R. (2009). When the Kurinji blooms (U. Narayanan & P. Seetharam, Trans.). Orient Blackswan. (Original work published 1968)
- Kuvempu. (2023). Bride in the hills (V. Viswanatha, Trans.). Speaking Tiger. (Original work published 1933)
- Mokashi Punekar, R. (2025, February 23). Caste, love, and resistance [Review of the book Bride in the hills, by Kuvempu, Trans. V. Viswanatha]. Frontline. https://frontline.thehindu.com/books/book-review-bride-in-the-hills-kuvempu-karnataka-malegalalli-madumagalu-caste-critique-analysis/article69210529.ece
- Monisha, S., & Karunambigai, R. (2024).Exploring the dynamics of tradition and change: character analysis of Rangan, Jogi, and Krishnan in When the Kurinji Blooms. Journal of Indian Languages and Indian Literature in English, 2(2), 56–59. https://www.jilile.in/articles/A158KJsSd
- Narrain, A. (2024, December 21). ‘Bride in the Hills’: Kannada writer Kuvempu’s novel depicts life under the ruthless regime of caste. Scroll.in. https://scroll.in/article/1077003/bride-in-the-hills-kannada-writer-kuvempus-novel-depicts-life-under-the-ruthless-regime-of-caste
- Panikkar, C. (2025). A celebration of ‘nothing is insignificant’ [Review of the book Bride in the Hills, by Kuvempu, Trans. V. Viswanatha]. The Book Review, 49(3), 27–28.
- Priya, R. (2020). An ethnographic reading of Rajam Krishnan’s When the Kurinji Blooms. Our Heritage, 68(1), 5558–5563.
- Sri, T. V. (2019). The broken promise to nature: A study of Rajam Krishnan's When the Kurinji Blooms. Literary Endeavour, 10(3), 393–398. https://www.literaryendeavour.org/archives/2019/35
References
Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black Feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1989(1), 139–167. https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/vol1989/iss1/8
The Federal. (2024, October 18). Kuvempu’s novel, Bride in the Hills, limns his cosmic vision of universal man. https://thefederal.com/category/features/kuvempus-novel-bride-in-the-hills-illustrates-his-cosmic-vision-of-universal-man-151110
Gayathri, S. (2021). A study of cultural aspects of tribal society through the novel "When the Kurinji Blooms" by Rajam Krishnan. International Journal of English and Studies, 3(7), 198-202. https://www.ijoes.in/papers/v3i7/21.IJOES-Gayathri%20S(198-202).pdf
Gundur, N. S. (2025, August 1). Bride in the Hills: A Kuvempu magnum opus for the English reader. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/books/book-review-bride-in-the-hills-author-kuvempu-translation-vanamala-viswanatha/article69862716.ece
Jinu, R., & Suganth, R. S. (2019). A portrait of ruined and devastated tribal life in Rajam Krishnan’s When the Kurinji Blooms. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 8(1C2), 1076–1078. https://www.ijrte.org/portfolio-item/a11860581c219/
Kavimani, N., & Chandrasekar, R. (2024). The impact of displacement on tribal communities: A reading of Rajam Krishnan's When the Kurunji Blooms through Michael M. Cernea's Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction Model. International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research, 6(2), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2024.v06i02.16647
Krishnan, R. (2009). When the Kurinji blooms (U. Narayanan & P. Seetharam, Trans.). Orient Blackswan. (Original work published 1968)
Kuvempu. (2023). Bride in the hills (V. Viswanatha, Trans.). Speaking Tiger. (Original work published 1933)
Mokashi Punekar, R. (2025, February 23). Caste, love, and resistance [Review of the book Bride in the hills, by Kuvempu, Trans. V. Viswanatha]. Frontline. https://frontline.thehindu.com/books/book-review-bride-in-the-hills-kuvempu-karnataka-malegalalli-madumagalu-caste-critique-analysis/article69210529.ece
Monisha, S., & Karunambigai, R. (2024).Exploring the dynamics of tradition and change: character analysis of Rangan, Jogi, and Krishnan in When the Kurinji Blooms. Journal of Indian Languages and Indian Literature in English, 2(2), 56–59. https://www.jilile.in/articles/A158KJsSd
Narrain, A. (2024, December 21). ‘Bride in the Hills’: Kannada writer Kuvempu’s novel depicts life under the ruthless regime of caste. Scroll.in. https://scroll.in/article/1077003/bride-in-the-hills-kannada-writer-kuvempus-novel-depicts-life-under-the-ruthless-regime-of-caste
Panikkar, C. (2025). A celebration of ‘nothing is insignificant’ [Review of the book Bride in the Hills, by Kuvempu, Trans. V. Viswanatha]. The Book Review, 49(3), 27–28.
Priya, R. (2020). An ethnographic reading of Rajam Krishnan’s When the Kurinji Blooms. Our Heritage, 68(1), 5558–5563.
Sri, T. V. (2019). The broken promise to nature: A study of Rajam Krishnan's When the Kurinji Blooms. Literary Endeavour, 10(3), 393–398. https://www.literaryendeavour.org/archives/2019/35