The Outlook Podcast Archive - The rebel musicians fighting India’s caste system

Download The rebel musicians fighting India’s caste system

Tenma and Arivu are members of The Casteless Collective - an ensemble protest band from the city of Chennai in southern India. They channel their outrage towards caste oppression into song. Arivu has seen that oppression first hand growing up in a Dalit - sometimes called ‘untouchable’ - community, and rapping became his outlet. As The Casteless Collective they blend traditional Gaana music with hip hop and rock, to challenge the caste system through their music.

Music courtesy of The Casteless Collective and Gana Palani.

Picture: Tenma (left) and Arivu (front right) performing as The Casteless Collective in Chennai, 2020
Credit: Palanikumar Manisha

Presenter: Emily Webb
Producer: June Christie and Troy Holmes

Published on Thursday, 7th January 2021.

Available Podcasts from The Outlook Podcast Archive

Subscribe to The Outlook Podcast Archive

We are not the BBC, we only list available podcasts. To find out more about the programme including episodes available on BBC iPlayer, go to the The Outlook Podcast Archive webpage.