Though last year witnessed several highs when it came to feminism and gender equality finally getting the pride of place, it goes without saying that women in India are still fighting the tide in most facets of life. Despite the odds stacked up against them, there were several who defied expectations — even possibly their own — and came out flying.
Be it taking a step against social norms, striking a blow at patriarchy or simply picking themselves up after seemingly insurmountable adversities, these women are an inspiration for us all. This Women’s Day, we arc the spotlight onto their lives, and how they have bounced back with brazen spirit and sheer chutzpah.
Priyanka Chopra, actress
PeeCee’s star has been shining bright, ever since her debut in Hollywood shot her to international fame. Watching her hobnob effortlessly with the likes of Jennifer Aniston and Chrissy Teigen backstage at the Academy Awards last month, it seemed difficult to imagine even the slightest chink in her armour. The Jharkhand native won the Miss World title 17 years ago, but even that career-defining honour seems like just another accomplishment on Priyanka’s ever-burgeoning CV, such has been her rise to international stardom of late.
Still, it hasn’t been all smooth sailing for the Baywatch star, as mother Madhu Chopra reveals, “When she won the Miss World pageant, she had not yet gained all that confidence. She had to battle a lot of personal issues, including low self-esteem. She also lacked confidence, as she had embarked on a journey without taking any charted lessons. It was only after years of grooming that she was able to stand straight and tall, style herself and dress in accordance to the occasion. Strength was induced within her only because she kept her eyes, mind and ears all wide open — and kept learning at every occasion. But it wasn’t a cake walk for Priyanka.”
The proud mom adds, “Priyanka is doing a lot for the girl child; she has gifted sewing machines through her foundation to the girls in order to enable them to be able to survive on their own. She wants girls everywhere to stand on their own and not depend on anyone for their living.”
Kangana Ranaut, actress
Queen K, Miss No-Nonsense, star of Koffee with Karan. The list of monikers Kangana keeps adding to her repertoire seems to be never-ending. Self-made as they come, the 29-year-old has battled fire with flame all her life — nothing more epitomised it than her recent altercation with Karan Johar on his chat show. Accusing the director of nepotism, Kangana spelt out what many in Bollywood would never dare to say.
But then again, that’s nothing new for the outspoken maverick, who’s always stood her ground, even against certified film royalty like Hrithik Roshan, who could not make this ‘outsider’ cow down! But what sets Kangana apart from the list of forthright heroines in the country, is that her career is also a massive success story — and audiences seem to have only just peeked into her abundant pool of talent.
Garnering a vociferous fan base (as Shekhar Suman found out recently) despite going against every rule in the ‘traditional heroine’ playbook, Kangana is fast becoming the quintessential ambassador for women as someone who dared to be not just be the leading lady of their films - but also their own lives.
Bhavana, actress
Much has been written and discussed about the traumatic experience South Indian actress Bhavana went through recently, that had everyone from co-star Prithviraj Sukumaran vowing not to do misogynistic films again, to colleagues like Varalaxmi Sarathkumar speak out about exploitation in the film industry (and even start an anti-harassment campaign titled #SaveShakti today)
But far from being deterred, the 30-year-old rose past all the ‘breaking headlines’ and stated with characteristic gumption that she would get back to work in no time at all. “Life has knocked me down a few times; it showed me things I never wanted to see. I experienced sadness and failures. But one thing is for sure — I always get up!” she posted recently, sending goosebumps to all her fans and well-wishers across the nation.
Reshma Qureshi, activist and model
Mumbai-born acid attack survivor Reshma Qureshi enthralled viewers as she strutted down the ramp at New York Fashion Week last year. She shot to fame when her make-up tutorial went viral on the Internet where she teamed up with the NGO Make Love Not Scars to highlight the life-altering effects of acid attacks. More specifically, she is fighting a battle against the over-the-counter sale of acid. The 20-year-old who was a subject of a gruesome acid attack at the hands of her own brother-in-law is today the face of Archana Kocchar’s brand. “I feel so happy to know that there is just a day dedicated to women. It feels so special. After all the atrocities I suffered post the aftermath of the attack, I did not give up and this is one message that I’d like to give all the girls out there, life will throw many challenges at you, there will be times when you’d just want to give up, but don’t let those challenges bog you down face them and keep faith, just like I did,” Reshma shares.
From the time when she was scared to look at herself in the mirror to the point where she has walked the ramp in New York, “I think I have come a long way. People know me now; I’m just not an acid-attack ‘victim’ anymore but a fighter and a survivor who did not give up. I now want to study and I even go to events in schools and colleges to motivate young children and share my stories with them.”
Sofia Ashraf, musician
This rapper and musician occupies cult status in the hearts of several youngsters across the country – from her ‘Kodaikanal Won’t’ exploits against Dow Chemicals to playing an active role in the Justice Rocks social movement. She was most recently in the news again for using her music to protest peacefully against the proposal of SasikalaNatrajan to become Chief Minister of the state, urging the generally ignorant younger strata of the society to become more politically aware.
Shares Sofia, who is currently in Japan says, “2016 was a great year for women-centric communication -- be it films, TV, digital or advertisements. I am quite excited by the prospects 2017 holds for me as a woman creating digital content. I am hoping to focus my attention this year on creating videos about body positivity. Through my series “Sista from The South”, I hope to address the issues, insecurities and ideologies of a modern South Indian woman. I began the year with a video that normalises acne and tells you that it’s ‘No Big Deal’. I have also planned a college workshop circuit where I hope to get young girls to start believing in themselves more. My greatest challenge has and always will be the fact that my family still doesn’t take me seriously. Until I get married and have a child, most of society is unable to see me as an actualised adult. My biggest challenge is getting people to understand that I might not have a child, but that does not mean I don’t have a purpose in life. That and trying to find lip-gloss that doesn’t stick to my hair!”
Nidhi Goyal, disability rights and gender justice activist
When Nidhi Goyal first found out at the age of 15, that she has a progressive degenerative eye disorder that would eventually take away her eyesight, she did not think that her world had ended. The reason, she says, was family. “I have two siblings, and my eldest sibling-brother- had lost his sight by then. I had already seen my brother and the entire family navigate and negotiate with disability successfully, hence there was no scope to think that disability is the end of life or anything. Yes, I was upset and nervous, but it was more about reorienting myself and my career goals, now that this was happening, rather than the feeling of my world crashing down,” she explains.
Today, the disability activist who fights for gender justice uses the medium of comedy to propagate her message. “I suppose it is this lens I have adapted when it comes to how I look at the world. Of course I feel frustrated when I see the prejudice around people with disabilities, but I find the element of the ridiculous in that and point it out. I suppose it is just the way I have always been, but it definitely helps in my stand-up delivery,” says Nidhi. Stand-up comedy is only a facet in Nidhi’s work in the disability sector. Nidhi’s work spans research, writing, training, campaigns, advocacy, and art. She works to raise issues at the intersection of disability and gender through op-eds, journal articles, and lectures in national and international forums. “I want to work towards building a world where disability is not equated to failure, to misery or to just struggles!”
Vasu Primlani, comedian
When Delhi’s Vasu Primlani got the Nari Shakti Puruskar by the President of India last year, she became the first comedian to be awarded the prestigious honour. She dons many hats in addition to being a famous stand-up comedian who does the tough job of making people laugh. But things were never hunky-dory for her. She was a victim of child sexual abuse and thus suffered from depression. It was somatic therapy that helped her recover. But also, it was her training as a triathlete that made her bounce back in life. “I was full of self-hatred and shame. But as a triathlete, you train everyday no matter if it is cold or hot, if you are sad or happy, energetic or tired — much like mothers do everyday for their kids. It taught me to get up and get going. I didn’t have to be 100% good that day, but I had to be one percent better. My goal is to never be the first woman to do something or lift the heaviest weights. My goal is to try and never give-up,” says Vasu.
Despite what she has gone through in life and a zillion times that she has cried her eyes out, she considers it a privilege to make people laugh. “The best compliment I have ever received is when someone told me, ‘I peed in my pants’. Comedians are depressed souls but they great analytical thinkers as they like to question.” Being openly gay doesn’t make her life easy but she considers homophobia, a non-issue. “It is the people who hate homosexuals, who need help,” says the person who never backs out on standing with the LGBT community. She thanks her parents for being a support system all through and thinks that they are anomalies in the parenting world as they used to tell her, “Find a nice girl and get married.”
Rupa Singh, jockey
Rupa Singh is the first and only woman jockey in India, and has won about 720 competitions including seven international tournaments. In a sport which has negligible women presence, Rupa has set a precedent fighting all odds and proving all nay-sayers wrong.
Initially, it was not an easy ride for Rupa with not-so-willing trainers. “When I started out, the trainers were not confident in coaching me. They were hesitant since I was a woman and considered to be weaker than men. But, I would say, more than physical strength, you need mental power. In horse riding, though physical fitness is required, your strategy and mind power is more important.”
Rupa says support from the family will make all the difference to a woman if she wants to prove herself in any field. “My father, who was a jockey, wanted me to become the first woman jockey in the country. So, I strongly feel that backing of the family is a must for a girl.”
Vaishali Shadangule, fashion designer
As an 18-year-old, with a dream to make a mark in the world of fashion, she ran away from her hometown in Vidisha, a small town in Madhya Pradesh, to Bhopal. She carried with her an aesthetic flair and sensibility about fashion. And that helped Vaishali Shadangule become an internationally renowned designer known for fusing western wear with traditional handcrafted textiles.
But Vaishali has been fighting odds for 16 years to chase her dreams. Talking about her motivation, she says, “There was no definite thought or plan behind moving away from home. It was just a feeling that motivated me to move out and find a route that could lead me to my unidentified dreams.”
Pursuing fashion was still an ambitious dream, when Vaishali reached Mumbai in 1999 and found work in an export house. Already in a financial crisis, her feeble English and unfamiliarity with the fashion circles made the going more tough. “There was not any particular phase when I decided to be a designer, rather it all happened organically. I was not very sure about what to do and was busy earning for my survival and completing my education. The opportunities that came my way led me towards personal and work growth. So I think the inspiration was to move forward from wherever I was. I took up a job to make myself capable enough to pursue my dreams fully. In retrospect, I think since childhood I used to like altering or modifying clothes my parents would bring for me and that became my passion over the years,” she shares.
In 2016, Vaishali, under the label Vaishali S, showcased her collection “And Quiet Flows the Thread” at the New York Fashion Week for the very first time. An inspiration to many women of her generation, Vaishali shares her mantra with them: “I feel it is very important to know yourself first and when you are discover your path, you must prepare yourself for it in whatever way you can and just move forward. Once you have started, then never let self-doubt or discouragement overpower you.”
Shalini Visakan, fashion designer
After realising that the ready-made garments were being a difficulty in providing comfort for her husband, who uses a wheelchair, Chennai-based designer Shalini Visakan has taken the challenge of creating adaptive clothing head-on. With her designs now receiving acclaim from across the nation, it was not an easy task to introduce the concept of adaptive clothing in fashion industry, she says. “Being a designer, I started off designing for my husband alone to find him the right fits. Gradually I started getting requests from few of his friends as well, and that’s when I thought I could take adaptive clothing ahead and for all. I wasn’t very confident I could do it initially since each disabled person has a different kind of body. For example, someone with a spinal cord injury has different requirements when clothes are made. When making clothes for the disabled, it requires many trials and alterations continuously to get the final result right. For this reason, it was also extremely hard to find tailors who would be patient enough throughout the process and not charge too high prices for the alterations. And I’m in this business not for any profits either, as I only demand minimal charges. But the satisfaction when one feels comfortable in my clothes is unimaginable. People from across the country are placing their orders with me and and it’s a great feeling,” Shalini explains.
This year she plans to open her boutique, which would showcase her adaptive clothing designs as well as bridal wear for the disabled.
