Now, a documentary on Rohith Vemula

Hyderabad - Rohith is now a subject of a documentary being planned by a group of students from the Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication here.

The suicide by Rohith Vemula, a Dalit research scholar at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) in January last, has stirred the nation's conscience.
While the tragedy triggered nationwide outrage over the alleged caste discrimination in universities, the life of Rohith, a 26 year old rebellious activist, has served as an inspiration for students, artistes and writers.
Rohith is now a subject of a documentary being planned by a group of students from the Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication here.
The documentary will focus mainly on the last days in the life of Rohith, an active member of Ambedkar Students Association (ASA) that took up the issues of Dalit students on the campus.
Though Rohith did not blame anyone in his suicide note, his suspension, along with four other Dalit students following their scuffle with a rival student leader, is believed to have driven him to take the extreme step.
"Rohith has now become an icon for many and a lot has been said and spoken about him. I am keen to explore the turmoil in his life, particularly in the last few days leading up to the tragedy," Anurag Godugu, a student of the Performing Arts, who will be directing the 25-minute long documentary said.
"I want to meet all those who were close to him and to analyse what Rohith spoke and did in the last few days before he took the drastic step of committing suicide. I will be meeting everyone who spent some time with Rohith in his last days to get an understanding of the turmoil that he had gone through," Anurag said.
The circumstances that forced the young scholar to end his life have raised disturbing questions over caste inequalities, restrictions on freedom of speech and callous administrative response in the seats of higher learning.
Now, there is a growing demand among the student community for enacting a central law to end caste discrimination across universities.
The UoH students are planning to launch a nation-wide movement demanding enactment of "Rohith Act", on the lines of "Nirbhaya Act", to put an end to caste discrimination in colleges and universities across the country. The agitation will be spearheaded by Rohith's colleagues.
"There is an urgent need for enactment of a separate law to tackle caste discrimination in educational institutions," said P Vijay Kumar, one of the five Dalit students suspended along with Rohith. However, all the suspensions have since been revoked.
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