# Examining S.L. Bhyrappa's *Vamshavriksha* & U.R. Ananthamurthy's *Samskara* **Source:** [ILF Samanvay — YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdVAqsUecO0) **Duration:** 1 hr 53 min | **Published:** 2 Nov 2019 A panel discussion from the India Literary Festival (ILF Samanvay) examining two landmarks of modern Kannada literature: **S.L. Bhyrappa's *Vamshavriksha*** (The Genealogy Tree, 1965) and **U.R. Ananthamurthy's *Samskara*** (1965) were published almost simultaneously, and together created a bit of a churning in Kannada literature through the late 1960s and 70s. Both were adapted into National Award-winning films. Bhyrappa's novel is a defence of tradition and dharmic continuity, while URAs a critique of Brahminical orthodoxy. The panel takes a broad view of these texts: their literary and cultural influences, their reception, their place within a wider Indian cultural public sphere, and their afterlives. ### Panellists - **Dr. T.S. Satyanath** — Comparative Literature Scholar, former Professor, Dept. of Modern Indian Languages and Literature, Delhi University - **Rashmi Doraiswamy** — Film scholar and culture critic, Academy of International Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia - **Prof. Rita Kothari** — Translator and literary theorist, Ashoka University | Time | Chapter | |------|---------| | [36:53](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdVAqsUecO0&t=2213s) | Cultural Public Sphere | | [44:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdVAqsUecO0&t=2648s) | The Indian New Wave | | [1:11:50](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdVAqsUecO0&t=4310s) | How Does Samskaara Become So Popular | This links a bit to [[Suragi]], and the ongoing plan to translate Dreze's *The revolt of the upper caste* ([read on The India Forum](https://www.theindiaforum.in/article/revolt-upper-castes)) & the upcoming project for an [[annotated reading of Rama Bhima Soma]] - [ ] re-read the opening sections of *Samskara* Last updated: 2026-03-25 10:08