Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

, India , death_date = , death_place = Bangalore , occupation = , education = M. A. and Ph.D in Kannada , alma_mater =

Bangalore University Bangalore University (BU) is a public state university located in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. The university is a part of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and affiliated by Univers ...

, period = 1954-2021 , genre = Dalit-Bandaya Movement , subjects = , movement = Dalit-

Bandaya movement Bandaya movement is a progressive ebelliterary movement in Kannada started by D. R. Nagaraj and Shudra Shrinivas in 1974. It promoted socially-committed literature and sought to make poetry a weapon against social and economic injustice. "Let p ...

, notableworks = Holemadigara Haadu, Saviraaru Nadigalu and Meravanige , spouse = , partner = , children = , relatives = , awards =

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

(Posthumous) , signature = Siddalingaiah (1954 in

Magadi Magadi is a Taluk headquarters located in Ramanagara district. The town is situated at a distance of 51 km from Bangalore. The founder of Bangalore, the great Kempegowda was a native of Kempapura, Magadi taluk. Magadi, having a rich cultur ...

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

– 11 June 2021), was an Indian poet, playwright, and Dalit activist, writing in the

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

language. He is credited with starting the Dalit-

in Kannada and with starting the genre of Dalit writing. He is one of the founders of the Dalita Sangharsh Samiti along with B. Krishnappa. In 1988, at the age of 34, he became a member of the

Karnataka Legislative Council The Karnataka Legislative Council is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of Karnataka state in South Western India. Karnataka is one of the six states in India, where the state legislature is bicameral, comprising two houses: the Leg ...

, serving till 2001 and, in 2006, chairman of the

Kannada Development Authority Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47&n ...

, a post with Cabinet rank that he held until 2008. He has been head of the Department of Kannada at

and a member of the University Syndicate of

Kannada University Kannada University, also called Hampi Kannada University or Hampi University or Kannada University, Hampi, is a research-oriented public university in Hampi, Karnataka, founded in 1991 by the Government of Karnataka through the Kannada Universit ...

, Hampi. He is acknowledged as a symbol of the

Dalit movement Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the Caste system in India, castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold Varna (Hinduism), varna syste ...

and a leading public intellectual and Kannada poet.

Death

Siddalingaiah died on 11 June 2021, in Bangalore, due to a

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

illness.

Works

Poetry

* ''Holemadigara Haadu'' (Songs of the

Holeya Holeya are a scheduled caste of India, mainly belonging to present day Karnataka State,Madiga Madiga, also known as Maadiga, Maatangi, Makkalu and Mahadiga, are an artisan community from southern India. They mainly live in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka, with a small minority in Tamil Nadu. Madigas are historic ...

, 1975) * ''Saaviraaru Nadigalu'' (Thousands of Rivers, 1979) * ''Kappu Kaadina Haadu'' (The Song of the Black Forest, 1982) * ''Aayda Kavithegalu'' (Selected Poems, 1997) * ''Meravanige'' (Procession, 2000) * ''Nanna Janagalu mattu Itara Kavitegalu'' (My People and Other Poems, 2005) * Kudiva Neeliya Kadalu (2017) * Ooru Saagaravagi (2018)

Autobiography

* Ooru Keri-1 : Atmakathana (1997) * Ooru Keri-2 : Atmakathana (2006) * Ooru Keri-3 : Atmakathana (2014) *
Ooru Keri - An Autobiography
' (

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...

, 2003) * ''A Word With You, World : The Autobiography of a Poet'' (

Navayana Navayana (Devanagari: नवयान, IAST: ''Navayāna'') means "new vehicle" and refers to the re-interpretation of Buddhism by Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar; it is also called Neo-Buddhism and Ambedkarite Buddhism. Ambedkar was a polymath, theol ...

, 2013) Translated by S.R. Ramakrishna
Excerpt)
* 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.

Plays

* Panchama * Nelasama * Ekalavya

Criticism and Essays

* Hakkkinota * Gramadevathegalu * Avataragalu * Jana Samsakruthi * Aa Mukha Ee Mukha

Accolades

* 2019 -

Pampa Award The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine Provinces of Argentina, provinces of Buenos Aires Province, Buenos Aires, La Pampa Province, La Pampa, ...

, highest literary award in Kannada, presented by

Karnataka Government The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...

* 2018 -

Nrupatunga Award The Nrupatunga Award is an award for excellence in Kannada literature in the Indian state of Karnataka. The award was instituted by the Kannada Sahitya Parishat and is sponsored by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation Bengalu ...

BBMP The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is the administrative body responsible for civic amenities and some infrastructural assets of the Greater Bengaluru metropolitan area. It is the fourth largest Municipal Corporation in India an ...

* 2015 - Chaired the 81st

Kannada Sahitya Sammelana The Kannada Sahitya Sammelana () is the premier gathering of writers, poets and Kannadigas. It is held with the aim of preserving and developing the Kannada language, its literature, art, culture and music. It was started in 1915 by H. V. Nanju ...

held in

Shravanabelagola Shravanabelagola () is a town located near Channarayapatna of Hassan district in the Indian state of Karnataka and is from Bengaluru. The Gommateshwara Bahubali statue at Shravanabelagola is one of the most important tirthas (pilgrimage des ...

* 2007 - Nadoja Award by Hampi University * 1998-99 -

Karnataka State Film Award for Best Lyricist Karnataka State Film Award for Best Lyricist is a state film award of the Indian state of Karnataka given during the annual Karnataka State Film Awards. The award honours Kannada language films. Superlative Winners Award winners The following ...

for his song ''Hasivininda Satthoru'' from the movie 'Pratibhatane' * 1986 -

Rajyotsava Award The Rajyotsava Prashasti or Rajyotsava Awards, the second highest civilian honor of the Karnataka state of India are conferred annually by the Government of Karnataka, Karnataka Government on the occasion of the establishment of the state on 1 ...

* 2022 - Padma Shri Award (Posthumous) for Literature and Education by Government of India

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siddalingaiah 1954 births 2021 deaths Dalit writers Kannada-language writers Dalit leaders Kannada poets Bandaya writers Indian male dramatists and playwrights Writers from Bangalore Poets from Karnataka 20th-century Indian writers Indian male poets Activists from Karnataka Karnataka MLAs 1989–1994 Politicians from Bangalore 20th-century Indian male writers Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in India