THE GT STORY PROJECT - LIFE AS A WOMAN
The most significant barrier to women empowerment, I believe, is that we act or believe that we live in a modern society but actually we still lay on the foundations of old societal norms. The biggest barrier is the hypocrisy and I firmly believe that change must be from within.
Read MoreI hold a BTech degree in Biotechnology and landed myself a very prestigious job in the field of Molecular Oncology; however, I changed my field to the business side of Healthcare, where I was into international business. I changed again to the Construction field, and finally, I joined my husband’s business post marriage… It may sound like I am a restless and dissatisfied or confused person from my various assignments, but I feel that not accepting the same routine makes me run for more.
Read MoreI'm a normal college going girl who lives in India. Nothing special in me. That's why the world should know how it looks from a normal teenager's point of view. I'm living away from home. Struggling with gender disparity and safety issues every single day. I'm studying in the country's most renowned college but the condition of girls there - gender inequality still prevails. And I have faced it too. I want to tell the world. I'm not a celebrity, who raises their voices here only for money. I want to represent all those simple girls out there, who are unique, but they can't speak for themselves. The state I belong to is known for child marriages and female foeticide. The state where I'm doing my college is considered a good literacy state. But the condition of women, it's all the same. I want to show it to the world.
Read MoreIf I'm open about my experiences as a woman, the biggest threat is somebody calling my parents and maligning my image. If I get harassed, I become "damaged goods". If I'm loud and open, I'm "easy and not marriage material". The fear of my image is so strong combined with my general well-being. If you can't relate, yesterday I was standing across the road from my college. A big car rolled up in front of me. Two men got off the car and I was so scared that I crossed the road immediately.
Read MoreI come from a land which is known for its culture and heritage, where bonds between families and people are at the highest. And I come from one of the states of India which is known as God’s own country - none other than Kerala. But still, sometimes we wonder, how can it be called ‘God’s own country’ when the women have no freedom?
Read MoreIt’s very challenging being a woman, and especially when you are a housewife too.... but I know deep down, I can’t just spend life cooking - rather I have to also follow my dream. Women play very important roles in my society, but I feel there is a lack of self awareness within us here.
Read MoreDoomed if we do and doomed if we don't. The culture is ridiculously patriarchal, authoritarian, and dismissive of personal agency. Women are simultaneously dehumanised and deified. The Indian system of matrimony is a regressive and archaic one, and religion is used as an excuse to demonise womanhood.
Read MoreMy mom and my other cousins who got married at really young ages, and were never given the chance to dream or achieve something in their lives are my biggest inspiration. And I just want to show all my family and society that I can not only jump, but I can jump to catch a flying bird. Most importantly, I want to explore how much farther I can push myself from my comfort zone.
Read MoreAs I'm from a village, I have seen a lot of discrimination against women. Girls are getting educated and the society…harassments are increasing against [women].
Read MoreWhen I started writing, I realized that I can bring about change even if it means starting from the grass root level. I am an outspoken and vivacious girl and people always judged me in a negative way. But, my writings helped me gain the kind of readers who were inspired and people actually stopped judging me and started admiring me for who I am. I am passionate about my writing! With a view to turn my passion into a career, I am currently pursuing my Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Media and I’m experiencing a totally different and free life.
Read MoreWhat would you like the world to know about YOU? What life experience, challenge or achievement do you want to share? What obstacles have you faced and overcome? Well, I am a 16 year old student and there is this particular experience I want to talk about. Every woman isn't the same, and I was still learning to fight against the cruel world at that point.
I took classes with a teacher and for some reason he always made me sit in the first bench. Slowly, I realised that the reason why he did that was to touch my hands and thighs. I, of course, didn't like it. But I am not the only one he did that to. But being a 16 year old girl, with no one to guide me and the others, we could never stand up against him. So we resorted to sitting in the last benches. Or told our male friends to sit beside us. After a while, thankfully he stopped.
Read MoreWhat does life as a woman or girl look like in your country / city / town / village? Any issues / challenges / exciting milestones? Being a South Indian, I can say women are more educated and powerful socially, economically and politically in our part of the country. Balanced sex ratio results in giving equal importance to male and female children. Here, life of a girl is culture-oriented, focused on education, job and marriage. Women empowerment has so far improved things for women from all walks of life.
Read MoreWhat does life as a woman or girl look like in your country / city / town / village? Any issues / challenges / exciting milestones? The challenge we face in my country is the biased judgments of men and women which are based on outdated theories for e.g. the ideal work for a female in my country is home-making and even in the higher, more developed income group of society, the bias remains the same.
My milestone was challenging the status quo of how a girl or a woman should be. I had to fight not just the scenario in the society about my choices and directions but also in my home within my family. It was and still is difficult to explain why a girl has all the rights to what she wants when she wants to create a life on her own. [Society] should be able to see a strong girl and be familiar with it.
Read MoreIndia has always treated its boys and girls differently. Girls are taught from a very young age to be obedient to their male counterparts and they are prepared to be compliant, demure wives, and thus, whenever a girl decides to take her life into her own hands or put her happiness before other people's, she is ostracized as a "rebel", her character is put under question and the girl herself cannot have dreams of her own or be passionate about anything without feeling guilty, because of the way she has been trained to think and believe by the patriarchal society.
Read MoreI was molested because there were no lights in my alley. After the incident, I learnt that most of the women of my area faced the same. I took to social media and protested till the word went to the local MLA. After that, he promised to put lights in the alley. And now, my alley is well-lit.
Read MoreAnd to prove their point, I have been told several times that this job is not meant for girls as we are 'emotionally unstable'. Everyday I'm getting a step ahead to success, following my passion.
Read MoreTo be a girl or woman today means to work shoulder to shoulder with men and maintain a class and a separate reputation of the women in a society, depicting that girls are no less than boys. A daughter is equal to ten sons and not tensions.
Read MoreI've never worn shorts or sleeveless blouses because my parents have never allowed me. Neither do I roam around at night. My biggest dream is to go on a solo world trip. I need to be independent enough to take my own decisions. I want to live here like a human being and not as a lady with too many restrictions.
Read MoreThe few moments that stand out are connected to the two instances of childhood abuse I had experienced. Though I had once gathered courage and talked to my parents about it, they told me to stop talking. They were more concerned with how openly I spoke of it, not hiding my face or using euphemisms, than with what had happened to me.
My father closed his ears with his hands and acted as if he was being victimized by my words. My mother kept giving excuses - you were a child. You might be remembering wrong. He might not have meant to do it. My parents took the unspoken words of my two abusers over my tears. My own parents preferred I suck it up because "boys will be boys" and "this happens to everyone".
Read MoreThe life of a woman, from a distance looks similar to that of a man. They have freedom to pursue whatever they want, wear whatever they choose (what else does a woman want?!) But upon looking closely, you'll know that the freedom is not a right, but a privilege for all the ladies, according to the patriarchal society.
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