ABSTRACT
This chapter attempts to understand the struggles of the lower castes, particularly of Dalits in Gujarat, which is otherwise a vibrant and dynamic state in India. The struggles of the Gujarati Dalits examines with reference to their self-expression in literature. Gadhvi's stories are conceptually important in so far as they make it possible to imagine Dalit life alongside the lives of the struggling middle classes in Gujarat. Under the inspiration of Dalit assertions in neighbouring Maharashtra, Gujarati Dalits started a social movement in the style of the Dalit Panthers in the 1970s. Initially, efforts were made to introduce the Dalit movement in Maharashtra to Dalits in Gujarat. The issue of social realism and social commitment has always been an issue in the history of mainstream Gujarati short stories; however, with the advent of Dalit short stories, the element of the social has acquired a specific meaning and value.
