Abstract
Dr Gail Omvedt, a sociologist of international repute, passed away on 25 August 2021 at the age of 80. She was born in Minneapolis, United States, and became an Indian citizen in 1983.
She was an extraordinary scholar and a prolific writer who interpreted the thought and revolutionary potential of thinkers such as Buddha, Phule, Ambedkar and Marx. Her vast corpus of books includes Buddhism in India (2003), Seeking Begumpura (2008), Ambedkar: Towards an Enlightened India (2008), Understanding Caste: From Buddha to Ambedkar and Beyond (2011) and Songs of Tukoba (translation work, with Bharat Patankar, 2012).
Dr Gail Omvedt’s life and work were dedicated to the social transformation of the oppressed. She sought to develop and Indianise Marxism and influenced a gamut of social movements in the country including the women’s movement, farmers’ movement, the Dalit movement, Baba Adhav’s Satyashodhak Workers’ movement and also worked to organise the ‘Shramik Mukti Dal’ together with her husband, Dr Bharat Patankar.
I came in regular contact with Dr Omvedt at Savitribai Phule Pune University. In October 2018, I organised a two-day seminar on her writings. She came through as wise, modest and compassionate as she interacted with Dalits, women and other members of the working class in the course of the discussions.
Dr Omvedt’s death was marked by a massive gathering of workers who raised the slogan ‘Jai Bhim-Lal Salaam’. Men and women from the village Kasegaon in Maharashtra where she lived and nearby places offered flower wreaths. The Samata Sainik Dal gave her a memorable salute. The atmosphere was charged and it was as if the flames emanating from her pyre were energising the workers who had assembled there and would continue to inspire the lives of those she had touched.