We were two management trainees fresh from college waiting to meet the iconic plant head. Filled with awe while meeting this “iron-jawed” icon of the metal world, we raised to shake hands with him. He shook hands with my male colleague and took his seat, leaving my arm stranded in the air. That was the first time when male chauvinism slapped me hard on the face, leaving me humiliated and perplexed. This was followed by several incidents where I was punished in my professional journey, my only fault being my gender. My customers refused to deal with me because they thought women cannot handle commodity business; my vendors chose not to take my orders seriously because they thought women cannot be in an authoritative position to give orders; my colleagues did not include me either in high value deals or in their tea breaks because according to them, women are incapable of handling either serious business or “sutta breaks”; the maximum that people at any official gathering would do in the name of involving me in discussions, was to pass a coquettish grin when I came across them. Though I was vexed by this callous attitude then, today I feel more equipped having experienced it, as this male dominated milieu helped me grow stronger and formed the basis of one of my strongest beliefs – that if you are being refused what you deserve, then don’t hesitate to fight for it, and that nobody will serve you your due on a platter, unless you demand for it.
Though the concept of feminism may appear to be cliché to many, it is a ground reality.Sexual assault, body shaming, wage gap and educational disparities are few issues that form a major part of the argument for feminism. Recently, the #MeToo movement had gained a lot of traction. While this movement was a big hit in the western countries and Hollywood, it was taken up only by few in India, and those who showed the audacity of speaking for themselves were questioned for their authenticity and belittled by many (including women) . Sheer insensitivity on the part of few muzzled the victims, denigrating them in public for bringing those dark secrets to the surface. Is this an indication that feminism exists only for the white women? Only complaints raised by known Indian faces make headlines. While issues raised by celebrities get ears, plight of the unknown are simply lost in the dark. Hence, one issue of feminism is about who is fighting for it and the other, more prominent and troublesome issue is whether people are raising their voices at all!
It is startling how a microscopic view can change the way we look at our world. Our beliefs and objectives vary according to what we see and do. For a fish in the fish tank, the biggest problem might be the wait period for getting food from its owner, while for the “Nemo” living in the sea, the challenges are new each day as it explores new geographies within the unlimited expanse of the ocean! Even after around 15 years of existence of the law regarding awareness about domestic violence and PWDV Act, there are people who do not know that violence against women is a legal crime. Recently I came across cases where women did not even know that they can raise their voices against sexual assault without being vilified for it! Similarly, domestic violence is a very common phenomena but there is still a half of the population that does not know that they don’t need to bear it and there is another half, which do not seem to have the courage to speak against it. So, trapped within the four glass walls, fish in the small tank is unaware of the world outside. On the other hand, “Nemo” might not even realize that there is a fish somewhere so ignorant, who may need an extra insight from the unexplored territories.
As a working girl, I might want to raise my voice for the cause of equality at the workplace, as that is of immediate concern for me while more serious things like domestic violence may not occupy my mind space for lack of it being in my experience zone. “Equality? Equality with whom? Equality for what? Will my stomach be filled with equality?” said Rajbala, an elderly resident from Saharanpur. For Rajbala and many more like her, probably gender issues come secondary to basic human rights. Though shackles of poverty may keep the fire of justice restrained, but the dam of endurance can only hold so much and will be broken someday. The elitism of feminism continues to be transformed by its cohort. It was the courage shown by Bhanwari devi, “a lowly woman from a poor and potter community” from Rajasthan who was taught a lesson by being raped repeatedly for raising her voice against child marriage, that Vishakha guidelines were formed. It was Sampat Pal Devi, who founded the ‘Gulabi Gang‘ dedicated to fighting for equal socio-economic, cultural and political rights for women. These and many more like the protests against the Mathura rape case of 1979-80, the campaigns of the mothers of ” dowry death” victims in 1982, those who marched against the Sati incident of 1987 show that it is not necessarily upper class women who are in the forefront of the struggle. It is only when we all hold hands together that the world starts to see the power of “pink”. Bereft of support, women have had to capitulate to misogyny. Many like me are a part of that ‘white women’ clan who seem to be riding the wave of feminism. It would only be fair to say that, it is our responsibility to pass the ‘fairness cream’ to others so that their ‘dark color’ does not make them invisible even when the lamp of equality is lighted.
Feminism is a war against subjugation and commoditization of women and till the time every woman is able to speak up for herself, the movement cannot even be said to have started in full force, let aside achieving its goal of a fairer, more egalitarian society. Empowerment of all is necessary and the crying need of the hour. Many more, and all those suffering the fate as of Bhanwari Devi, need to be instilled with courage like hers to rise up against the demonic forces prevalent and flourishing in society. Many influencers and feminists promote women in positions of power to help other females rise, for that is surely something that will impact the movement of feminism, its provenance and fate.