While the name Mahasweta Devi may be completely unfamiliar to many in the United States, it has become a household name in India.
Friday night, a crowd of about 70 people gathered in Stiteler Hall to learn more about the Indian writer and activist.
The audience viewed "Mahasweta Devi: Witness, Advocate, Writer," a half hour film that depicts a day in Devi's life.
Following the screening, those in attendance had an opportunity to ask questions of the film's director, Shashwati Talukdar, and Ganesh Devy, an award-winning literary critic from India.
Executive Producer Henry Schwarz introduced the film with enthusiasm.
"These were the three most interesting, exciting years of my life," said Schwarz, who is also a Georgetown professor.
"What these people are doing is extraordinary," he added, referring to the film's director and its star.
A substantial part of Devi's written work focuses on the treatment of denotified tribes in India. These tribes consist of former nomads, and many say they are being mistreated by the national government.
In the late 1800s, Great Britain passed an act which classified hundreds of members of Indian nomadic tribes as criminals. The act was in effect until 1952, when India became an independent nation.
In 1959, the tribes, which were under suspicion due to their nomadic lifestyles, were reclassified as "habitual offenders" -- people considered more likely to commit crimes. The groups remain stigmatized by this label today.
Devi has taken an active role in the fight for social justice for these denotified tribes.
Along with Penn students, last week's screening attracted students from all over Philadelphia for a variety of reasons.
"I'm interested in activism and anthropology," said Sandhya Ganapathy, a Temple University graduate student in anthropology, who found out about the film through an e-mail.
Those involved with the making of the film were quick to praise Devi's accomplishments.
"Mahasweta is well on her way to being given the most prestigious awards in the world," Schwarz said.
The documentary highlighted specific denotified groups such as the Sabars, who do not have any land of their own and are constantly being harassed by the police.
"They have been hounded by the police for so many generations... I always say I have to be the voice of the voiceless," Devi said in the documentary.
And Devy agreed with the sentiments of the film's lead figure.
"They are born criminals. They are not criminals by action," he said.
Devi also voiced her strong beliefs about the power of language throughout the film, occasionally drawing a laugh from the crowd.
"Language is a weapon... language has been given to us. It's not for shaving armpits," Devi said in the film.
