A portrait of Indian women’s activism—from the fierce 1970s anti-rape protests in Mumbai to the digital shakti of #MeToo
The 1970s Mathura rape case protests sparked reform in the country’s rape laws
Quiet dissent, loud marches, and digital rebellions—women in India have challenged power in myriad ways. Women’s Empowerment in India: From Rights to Agency (2024, Routledge) charts the compelling journey, spotlighting not only prominent movements but also the everyday acts of resistance that often go unnoticed in popular discourse. The volume is co-authored and co-edited by Anjoo Upadhyaya, Åshild Kolås, and Eileen Connolly.
ADVERTISEMENT
From the fiery anti-rape protests of 1970s Mumbai that spurred legal reforms, to Rajasthan’s veiled women stepping out to demand wage transparency through the Right to Information movement, and Orissa’s grassroots campaigns against exploitation in urban slums, the book uncovers struggles as building blocks in the national context. For instance, the Hindu Code Bill campaign remains a pivotal moment, where women’s organisations united to confront entrenched patriarchal family laws. Their relentless advocacy spurred reforms in the 1950s, reshaping norms around marriage, inheritance, and women’s rights. The campaign also cemented the link between grassroots activism and legislative change in post-Independence India.
Today, the digital #MeToo rebellion and similar hashtags carry forward this legacy on new fronts. This volume provides a vivid lens into how women’s activism—spanning local, regional, and national efforts, both formal and informal—shaped India’s ongoing fight for rights and representation, reminding us that activism is not merely civic disruption but the very pulse of democracy.
A key focus of the book is the use of digital technology, as exemplified in the 2017 BHU protests over the sexual assault of a female student. It gained national attention after students took to social media platforms to amplify their voices. Pic/Getty Images
To begin with, Vibhuti Patel’s portrayal of 1970s Mumbai brings the city alive as a vibrant, restless epicentre of feminist resistance. From candlelight vigils outside the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus to sit-ins at Azad Maidan, Mumbai’s streets became a battleground for rights, justice, and visibility. Patel chronicles how feminist groups like the Stree Mukti Sanghatana (SMS just commemorated five decades of activism), Forum Against Oppression of Women, and Akshara gathered momentum as they took to public spaces to articulate their views. In the iconic chawls of Girgaon, home to workers and intellectuals, debates on gender rights were held after union meetings, while at colleges like St Xavier’s and SNDT, feminist ideas found expression in both classrooms and street plays. The fabric of Mumbai—its teeming trains and bazaars—uniquely allowed the women’s movement to spread.
In the 1980s, Shehnaaz Sheikh, a Muslim woman from Mumbai, challenged triple talaq after being unilaterally divorced. Disowned by her family and rendered an outcast, she found support from women’s groups, which enabled her to study law. Sheikh went on to form Awaaz-e-Niswaan, India’s first feminist Muslim organisation. Her fight ran parallel to the Shah Bano case in Indore, and together, they highlighted the intersection of religion, law, and women’s rights.
As a young, impressionable collegian in the early 1980s, I found myself swept into this whirlwind of activism, performing in the iconic women’s play Mulgi Zhaali Ho under the aegis of SMS. Around that time, Vibhuti Patel was already a senior figure in the feminist movement, her voice resonating across various platforms. She was a guiding presence like Sharada Sathe and Meena Deval, speaking at forums that shaped our understanding of women’s rights.
Anjoo Upadhyaya
When I eventually entered journalism, Patel became an invaluable source of information and perspective, offering clarity and depth on the evolving women’s movement. Reading her chapter now brought those times rushing back. In that sense, From Rights to Agency becomes both personal and political for me. It celebrates those years when I, under the aegis of SMS, toured across India with the play written by Jyoti Mhapsekar. We were proud to articulate a life of newer possibilities—more just, and more equitable. The book validates the role of small players who made the big difference.
For Anjoo Upadhyaya, co-editor and professor of Political Science from Banaras Hindu University, and currently at MIT-World Peace University, Pune, feminism wasn’t just an academic interest—it was a deeply personal journey. “In the mid-1980s, I found myself drawn to feminist scholarship while helping establish the Women’s Study Centre at BHU,” she recalls. As a mid-career academic working alongside stalwarts like Veena Mazumdar, Neera Desai, and Ilina Sen, Upadhyaya was inspired by their bold ideas and commitment to the cause. “I would write occasionally on women’s issues, but the activism following the Mathura rape case [which occurred in 1972 and sparked reform in rape laws] left me stunned and fascinated—it was a flashpoint,” she elaborates her resolve to document the struggles and triumphs of women activists-scholars.
Her journey later drew her focus to the intersection of women and peace processes, contributing to the global discourse that shaped United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325—which reaffirms the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, as well as urges special measures to protect women and girls from gender-based violence in situations of armed conflict.
Based in Banaras, but oscillating between Pune and Oslo, Upadhyaya has long been associated with the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), particularly its Centre for Gender, Peace and Security. She credits her time abroad for expanding her horizons. “While in Sweden at the Karlstad University, I presented on the tradition of non-violent protest movements in India with a special focus on the Nirbhaya case. Living in Kathmandu, I studied Occupy Baluwatar, another movement against sexual violence.”
The book is co-authored by Åshild Kolås, a social anthropologist and research professor at PRIO, known for her work on gender, governance, and identity politics, and Eileen Connolly, a gender and politics specialist who was the Director of the Ireland India Institute, at Dublin City University where Upadhyaya spent two semesters teaching and researching.
The book treads a varied terrain. “We have chapters that range from the leadership of young university students in a non-metropolitan city to rural veiled women securing their rights with a rights-based approach,” says Upadhyaya.
The key focus of the book is the use of digital technology, as exemplified in the 2017 BHU protest, where students took to social media platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter to organise and amplify their voices over an assault on a female student. The BHU protest gained national attention, forcing action from authorities and countering misinformation.
The book features diverse voices. Chitra Sinha sheds light on the Hindu Code Bill, marking significant changes to women’s legal entitlements. Linda Lane examines self-help groups in rural Odisha, while Vidhi Agrawal focuses on the Right to Information through her study in Rajasthan. Nita Mishra explores the struggles of slum women in Odisha, and Prarthana Purkayastha discusses dance as a tool of activist labour in Kolkata. Eileen Connolly studies the continuing challenges to empowerment.
But the book does not stop at India’s borders—it captures the South Asia dynamic too. Whether in the turbulent political landscapes of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh,
or Pakistan, women rewrote the blueprint for political empowerment. It showcases how women like Indira Gandhi, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, and Benazir Bhutto reshaped their countries, although they assumed power through familial ties. The ties were a source of strength and a limitation—providing access to power, but often reinforcing the patriarchal structures they sought to transcend.
Sumedha Raikar-Mhatre is a culture columnist in search of the sub-text. You can reach her at [email protected]
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
