“Gendering Caste Through a Feminist Lens” by Uma Chakravarti examines and expounds the undercurrent of links between caste and gender. She unmasks the harmony in the functioning of caste system to reveal the underlying violence and force that perpetuate a hierarchical and fragmented society. She was, probably, the first person to coin the phrase “Brahmanical patriarchy” and used it as a concept to examine how, in archaic India, the control of property or economic asset by a certain caste, is solidified and maintained through regulations over women’s sexuality, which is further reinforced by the state. The control and subjection of women and their sexuality are elementary to the maintenance of the caste system. She elaborates on the range of patriarchal practices within the larger context of sexuality and dominance over material resources. Caste and gender hierarchy are the building blocks of Brahmanical social order and are tightly interlinked. Brahmanical patriarchy does not mean patriarchy in that particular caste. Rather, it refers to the particular form of patriarchy in societies organised on the basis of caste. While the term has been theorised through examinations of texts like Dharmashastras, largely documented under Brahmanical influences, it offers insights into current social practices.
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