ISSN2320-2882
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Paper Title
Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit
Authors
Amita
Keywords
Caste Performativity, Savarna Mask, Epistemic Reclamation, Structural Violence, Psychological Split, Dalit Identity, Politics of Protest, Social Asphyxiation.
Abstract
The research explores the intricate relationship between caste performativity and the politics of identity as depicted in Yashica Dutt's memoir, Coming Out as Dalit. The study identifies a primary research problem: the invisible yet exhausting labor required by Dalit individuals to "pass" as upper-caste within elite, urban, and globalized spaces. This performance, conceptualized as the "Savarna mask," is analyzed not as a choice for social mobility, but as a defensive response to deep-seated structural violence and the threat of institutional exclusion. This research investigates caste performativity and the politics of identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit. It addresses a central research problem: the invisible, exhausting labor required by Dalits to "pass" as upper-caste in elite spaces. This performance, or the "Savarna mask," is analyzed as a defensive response to structural violence rather than a choice for mobility.
The study argues that "passing" extracts a devastating psychological tax, causing a 'psychological split' and constant hypervigilance. For Dalit women, this results in a 'dual erasure' of both caste history and gendered agency to satisfy the fraudulent requirements of a "post-caste" society. This concealment is framed as "symbolic suicide," where the authentic self is negated to avoid discrimination. Furthermore, the research examines the transition from traumatic concealment to a politics of protest. By "coming out," the subject performs epistemic reclamation, transforming "stinging shame" into a defiant political standpoint. The study concludes that discarding the mask is the only antidote to "social asphyxiation," restoring the "social breath" of the community and establishing communal sovereignty against exclusionary meritocracies.
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IJCRT — journal style
"Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit", IJCRT - International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts (www.ijcrt.org), ISSN:2320-2882, Vol.14, Issue 4, page no.a504-a515, April 2026, Available :https://ijcrt.org/papers/IJCRT2604066.pdf
APA — 7th edition
Amita. (2026). Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit. International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts, 14(4), a504-a515. https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066
MLA — 9th edition
Amita. "Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit." International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts, vol. 14, no. 4, 2026, pp. a504-a515, https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066.
Chicago — 17th, bibliography
Amita. "Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit." International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts 14, no. 4 (2026): a504-a515. https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066.
Harvard — author–date
Amita (2026) 'Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit', International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts, 14(4), pp. a504-a515. Available at: https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066
IEEE — numbered reference
Amita, "Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit," IJCRT, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. a504-a515, Apr. 2026.
Vancouver — biomedical
Amita. Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit. IJCRT. 2026 Apr;14(4):a504-a515.
AMA — 11th edition
Amita. Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit. IJCRT. 2026;14(4):a504-a515. Accessed at https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066
BibTeX — Zotero, Mendeley, LaTeX
@article{IJCRT2604066,
author = {Amita},
title = {Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit},
journal = {International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts},
volume = {14},
number = {4},
pages = {a504-a515},
year = {2026},
month = {April},
issn = {2320-2882},
url = {https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066}
}
RIS — EndNote, RefWorks
TY - JOUR
AU - Amita
TI - Passing, Protest, and Reclamation: Caste Performativity and the Politics of Identity in Yashica Dutt's Coming Out as Dalit
T2 - International Journal of Creative Research Thoughts
JA - IJCRT
VL - 14
IS - 4
PY - 2026
SN - 2320-2882
UR - https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066
SP - a504-a515
ER -
Issue
Volume 14 Issue 4,
April-2026
Pages : a504-a515
Article Information
- Pages
- a504-a515
- Published
- April 2026
- Registration ID
- IJCRT_304469
- Published Paper ID
- IJCRT2604066
- Research Area
- Medical Science All
- Author Type
- Indian Author
- Location
- DALHOUSIE, Himachal Pradesh, India
- Peer Review
- Request Peer Review Report
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0 · Open Access
- ISSN & Impact Factor
- 2320-2882 · IF 9.17
- Downloads
- 189
- Permanent Link
- https://ijcrt.org/viewpaperforall.php?paper=IJCRT2604066
- Published Paper PDF
- https://ijcrt.org/papers/IJCRT2604066.pdf
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