The second session in the Spring 2024 talk series by Human Sciences Research Group (HSRG), was an interaction with Gita Ramaswamy on 10  January. Gita Ramaswamy is best known for her work with Hyderabad Book Trust (HBT) that has published over four hundred and fifty titles in Telugu since 1980. HBT has now started an English imprint, South Side Books. Gita has been earlier associated with the Marxist–Leninist movement in Telangana, teaching English in a Dalit Basti in Ghaziabad near Delhi and for her work with agricultural labourers.

The interaction began with Gita sharing her opinion on how privileged knowledge producers can contribute towards progressive social change. Knowledge production and contribution to the greater good must be linked to the knowledge production of working people to frame a convincing narrative of change. She put an emphasis on the current challenge of academia to find alternative pathways of getting involved in structured political movements or parties, or remaining independent and still contributing to social change. Gita also spoke of the need to recognize the isolation of academia from the lives of people at large and the circles which are growing smaller and smaller by the day as she discussed how she found the courage of conviction to pursue a path of relative discomfort to change her nation for the better.

Any effective movement must begin from the grassroot level and involve the people it concerns directly be it environmental, political, or social. When talking of her memoir she also recalled how when she was part of the Dalit movement in Ibrahimpatnam, she was a participant in the movement rather than a leader of the movement, assisting the cause with her skill set and knowledge without imposing on the autonomy of the people involved.

Gita took questions from the audience about the kinds of issues she has been closely associated with and her experiences in social work, publishing and how that led to writing.

January 2024