Mysore royal scion and BJP MP Yaduveer Wadiyar said it was “extremely necessary” for Mushtaq to clarify her “respect for Mother Bhuvaneshwari and Mother Chamundeshwari" after her dated speech resurfaced.
Published Aug 26, 2025 | 11:42 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 26, 2025 | 11:42 PM
Banu Mushtaq
Synopsis: An old speech by veteran Kannada author Banu Mushtaq, reflecting on the symbolic and cultural appropriation of the Kannada language and its exclusionary politics, has resurfaced after the Booker Prize winner was invited by the Karnataka government to inaugurate the upcoming Mysuru Dasara.
Two years ago, at the 2023 Jana Sahitya Sammelana, veteran Kannada author Banu Mushtaq reflected on her experiences as a minority woman in Kannada literary spaces and questioned the way Kannada has long been personified as a goddess, ‘dressed in the red and yellow of vermillion and turmeric’.
She argued that such symbolism has excluded minorities, Dalits, and women from fuller participation in the cultural and literary identity of the language.
“My exclusion did not start today; it began long ago. Today, it is only being completed,” Mushtaq told the gathering.
“Please reflect on this matter, because as they say, ‘Where women are worshipped, there the gods rejoice.’ Even here, seating the Kannada goddess on the mandāsana, how you are trampling, how you are inflicting violence against women; the same you are doing to Kannada. You are answerable to me. I am holding you against the wall; you are answerable to me.”
Those remarks, have returned to the spotlight after the Siddaramiah-led Congress government in Karnataka invited Mushtaq—who recently brought global recognition to Kannada literature by winning the International Booker Prize for her collection Heart Lamp (translated by Deepa Bhasthi)—to inaugurate this year’s Mysuru Dasara.
In her Sammelana address, Mushtaq questioned the symbolism of Kannada Bhuvaneshwari and the colours of the Kannada flag, suggesting they created boundaries that pushed some communities to the margins.
“As a minority woman, I wish to bring some of my observations to your attention. Whether you like it or not, this is my firm stance. For the Kannada language to grow, for it to be spoken as a language by Banu Mushtaq or by her family, you didn’t even give an opportunity,” she told the audience.
“You have turned the Kannada language into Kannada Bhuvaneshwari. By turning the flag yellow and red—the colors of harishina (turmeric) and kumkuma (vermillion)—you took her away and placed her on the mandāsana. Where should I stand? What should I see? How should I get involved?” she asked.
She continued: “You made Kannada the goddess Bhuvaneshwari. You are pulling the chariot of Kannada, you made Kannada festivals, and Kannada conferences; but what did you really achieve? For my exclusion, did you really need so much trouble?”
Beyond symbolism, Mushtaq emphasised the creative and intellectual contributions of minority and Dalit writers, noting that Kannada literature had been enriched by voices from the Bandaya movement.
“A wonderful thing is that today, in Kannada literature, there are very senior leaders, men and women. Today, minorities, Dalits, and people from neglected communities are writing together in Kannada. In a recent survey, there are more than six hundred Muslim writers. Dalits here did not remain silent, did not stay idle, and did not fail to acquire knowledge. So what more can we say? What more can we do?” she said.
“The Bandaya Sahitya Sanghatane opened the great door of Kannada to Muslim writers, Dalit writers, women, and neglected communities. They opened it wide to the outside world.”
She continued: “We had our hesitations, doubts, illusions at the stage of our writing, and obstacles of expression—but in the context of rebellion, we found solutions and kept moving forward. This group continues to grow, and that is a happy matter.”
She also criticised narrow historical narratives that reduce cultural figures to their religious or caste identities.
“I will say this, my friends: amidst the stranglehold of the caste system and the grip of communalism, which strangles human values, even then, for sensitive literature and art to flourish, the dynamism and generosity within the lower strata and neglected communities of this country is the main reason,” she said.
“Yet even today, in these very communities, instead of valuing that art and literature, you still see only a Muslim in Tipu Sultan, only a Muslim in MF Husain, only a Dalit in Baba Saheb Ambedkar. What should we do with this narrow outlook of yours?”
Mushtaq’s invitation to inaugurate this year’s Mysuru Dasara has drawn criticism from the BJP, with party leaders citing her 2023 remarks as evidence of hostility towards Hindu traditions.
BJP MP for Bengaluru South, Tejasvi Surya, described the Congress government’s move as part of “a single, well-orchestrated game plan scripted by urban Naxals and Marxists.”
“The so-called Anti-Communal Task Force, the Hate Speech Bill, the Rohith Vemula Bill pushed at Rahul Gandhi’s insistence, the dubious Dharmasthala SIT, and now the Congress government’s decision to have Smt. Banu Mushtaq—who has openly expressed her opposition to the worship of Kannada as Mother Bhuvaneshwari, objected to the Hindu cultural symbolism associated with the Kannada flag—inaugurate the sacred Dasara Chamundeshwari Pooja, all these are not isolated moves,” Surya wrote on X on 25 August.
“They are part of a single, well-orchestrated game plan scripted by urban naxals and Marxists, executed with the full enthusiasm of Siddaramaiah and the Congress state government. We must see through this design and resist it with all our strength.”
Similarly, Mysore royal scion and BJP MP Yaduveer Wadiyar questioned Mushtaq’s stance on Hindu traditions, even while acknowledging her literary achievements.
“Smt. Banu Mushtaq has brought immense pride to the world of Kannada literature as a distinguished writer and as the first Kannada author to win the International Booker Prize,” he wrote. “It has come to our notice that she has made some statements about Mother Bhuvaneshwari in the past.”
Wadiyar added that Dasara is “a Hindu religious festival mentioned in the scriptures and Puranas, and celebrated with great splendor from the time of the Vijayanagara Empire and the Mysore King” and said it was “extremely necessary” for Mushtaq to clarify her “respect for Mother Bhuvaneshwari and Mother Chamundeshwari.”
Amid the controversy, Mushtaq said she saw the state government’s invitation as an honour and emphasised her respect for people’s faith.
“It is definitely a happy thing. You call Chamundeshwari Taayi (Mother Chamundeshwari), I respect your feelings. Many call it Naada Habba (state festival), I respect that too,” she said.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
