Supromit ঃ  Please tell us about the present state of contemporary Bengali Dalit poetry.
Shyamal ঃ I feel, the scope of Bengali Dalit poetry is quite large. Inspired by Dalit consciousness, many Dalit poets, young and old, have devoted themselves in contributing incessantly to the existing corpus of Bengali Dalit poetry.
Supromit ঃ Can you give us a few significant names among the Bengali Dalit poets and tell us a few words about their works?
Shyamal ঃ One could say, significant names among the Bengali Dalit poets are Anil Sarkar, Achintya Biswas, Kapil krishna Thakur, Nikhilesh Roy, Manohar Mauli Biswas, Jatin Bala, Panchanan Das, Pradip Barman, Kalyani Thakur and Lily Hader to name a few. On the one hand, their poems talk about the social oppression, stories of humiliation and violence, the struggles of the dalits. On the other, they are filled with revolutionary fervour.
Supromit ঃ How do you think the national and international literature influenced Bengali Dalit poetry?
Shyamal ঃ As far as international influence is concerned, the Black Literature of the United States has influenced Bengali Dalit poetry. In India, Black Panthers from Maharashtra did have significant influence on Bengali Dalit poetry.
Supromit ঃ What role do you think the Adivasis play in Bengali Dalit poetry?
Shyamal ঃ The Adivasi poets do play quite a significant role in Bengali Dalit poetry. In the nineties, Bengali Dalit Literary Association was established. From the very beginning, Adivasi intellectual Mandal Hembrom was associated with this organization. The mouthpiece of this association, “Chaturtha Duniya” featured poems by Adivasi poets like Marshal Hembrom, Badal Hembrom, Lakhsmi Mandi among others.
Supromit ঃ What kind of influence generally works on your poetry? How does the experience of a Dalit life appear in your poems?
Shyamal ঃ My poems are severely influenced by Dalit consciousness. My battle against the violence, oppression, neglect, abuse and injustice faced by the dalits across the country is reflected through my poems.