Waiting for a Visa

Waiting for a Visa is a 20-page autobiographical life story of B. R. Ambedkar written in the period of 1935–36. It consists of reminiscences drawn by Ambedkar, related to his experiences with untouchability, in his own handwriting. The book is used as a textbook in Columbia University.

The book consists of a very brief introductory passage followed by six sections, relating Ambedkar's experiences with untouchability, starting from his childhood. Sections 1,2,3 and 4 consist of Ambedkar's own experiences, while Sections 5 and 6 consist of other people's experiences with untouchability.

In a short one paragraph introduction, Ambedkar introduces the theme of his book, especially for the benefit of foreigners and those who may not be familiar with the concept of untouchability.

The first section describes a journey undertaken in 1901 by the ten-year-old Ambedkar and his siblings, from their residence in Satara to Koregaon, to meet their father, and the discriminatory behaviour they experience en route at Masur which makes their very journey appear impossible and dangerous.

This sections describes the deep divides that existed in Baroda during that time, not just between castes, but also between religions. In 1918, upon returning to India (after 3 years in USA and an year in London), Ambedkar went to Baroda state to work as a probationer in the Accountant General's Office. However, upon arriving in Baroda, he realized that none of the Hindu hotels would allow his to stay due to his lower caste. He found a Parsi inn, but here, non-Parsis were not allowed to stay. He and the Parsi inn-keeper reached a compromise, where by Ambedkar gave his name as a Parsi, and was allowed to stay. However, this fraud (his words) was discovered by other Parsis, and on the eleventh day of his stay, a group of angry Parsi men, armed with sticks, arrived to remove him from the inn. He had to leave the inn that very day, and not having a place to stay, was forced to leave Baroda and return to Bombay to find work elsewhere.

In this section, Ambedkar recounts an embarrassing accident that occurred to him in the village of Chalisgaon (Maharashtra) in 1929. He had been appointed as a member to a committee instituted by the Bombay government, to investigate allegations of oppression and grievances of untouchables. After carrying out investigations in the district of Khandesh, en route to Bombay, he disembarked at Chalisgaon to investigate a case of social boycott by Hindus against untouchables of that village. The untouchables of the village requested him to spend the night with them, but as the tonga walas considered it below their dignity to cart an untouchable (Ambedkar), the villagers had to hire a tonga (horse-driven carriage) and ride it on their own. They did so, however the untouchable riding the carriage was a novice, and had an accident as they were crossing the river on a culvert. Ambedkar was thrown off the carriage as a wheel got stuck between the stones of the culvert. This resulted in multiple injuries to Ambedkar and a fracture. The horse and carriage fell into the river.

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