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| Edited By: Shaili Chopra |Source: DNA |Updated: Dec 31, 2016, 07:44 AM IST
Sakshi Malik, Dipa Karmakar, Deepa Malik, Geeta Phogat, PV Sindhu, Sania Mirza and many others grabbed headlines for achievements, records and Olympic medals. But worth celebrating even more was the women taking a stand on sexual harassment and speaking up on issues women players face. Sakshi is the first female wrestler from India to win a medal at the Olympics. While we got to know her better in 2016, she had been facing harassment for decades, being a woman who chose wrestling in Haryana where the sport is male dominated. Geeta Phogat and her story won hearts in the Aamir Khan production Dangal but India got more aware of how deep-rooted gender issues are. Dipa Karmakar showed grace not just with the produnova in an Olympic stadium but also groundedness by returning a fancy car, which she thought didn’t go with her personality. Deepa Malik gave us goosebumps by becoming the first Indian woman to win a medal in Paralympic Games and won a silver medal at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in the shot put. “I have made it…I have been so vocal in the last seven-eight years since I have been made to understand what it means to be a woman in a man’s world. I do think yeah it is a bit tougher. Every woman will agree with me. Maybe not every man will since they don’t want to accept it. Life is a little bit tougher for us, whether it’s going to an interview, whether it is going to work or getting on a bus, play tennis or it could be anything. Who had thought Serena Williams would have to call this out too? Or Madonna? Yes — it doesn’t start and end at the workplace, it doesn’t matter if you achieve and achieve every single day, it doesn’t matter that you are a top-rated actor or a frontline war journalist. It just goes on.
We saw India’s first female-led company Shopclues turn to a Unicorn, crossing a billion dollars in revenues. Radhika Agarwal is edgy and out with a mission. We saw tremendous hunger among women to build and grow businesses. The impact of this is not just respect from men and society but new respect amongst each each other. In a competitive to collaborative world, that’s important. That women too make in India is something Niti Ayog CEO said well, “India can grow in double digits if women can be engaged better in the workforce.” Ananya Birla runs India’s third largest micro-finance outfit called Svatantra. Every other week she is in another village, understanding how her clients (read small, unorganized, often self help groups and many times women) are utilising the small loans given to them. Bangalore-based Uma Reddy of Hitech Magnetics is an electrical engineer running a company that manufactures transformers. Radhika Chopra of Three Clive Road is making bespoke stationery and teas and candles. There’s Siddhi Karnani of Parvata Foods big into farming and organic produce in Sikkim, there is Upasana Taku running mobile wallets and the list is long. The breadth of businesses women are involved in is wide-ranging and impactful. For years one didn’t hear of their stories, but today we are celebrating as many women to inspire them to lead and grow. As I have said before, Make In India to me is a lioness, not a lion.
From film stars to sportstars, all spoke of sexism. Finally in Bollywood, there was an uproar against gender pay-gaps (but the results of this remain uncertain), and in the sportsworld women talked about how they have been treated like second-class citizens for years. Time and again, we hear about horror stories whereby they are marginalised in conversation. Where they are put through questions that underscore their gender over work. Anushka Sharma quipped about why we don’t ask men about their rankings in Bollywood. The ridicule is underscored, while women are expected to overlook this. 2016 was the year women read between the lines and came through, no holds barred. Simone Biles took bodyshamers head on. Serena Williams said it straight. If she was a man she might have been a global star at least 6 years ago. Madonna said the industry remained surprised that a woman her age was still in business and how age added to gender made for a really nasty plate of discrimination. “Thank you for acknowledging my ability to continue my career for 34 years in the face of blatant sexism and misogyny and constant bullying and relentless abuse.”
One can’t ignore the rise of Sasikala or that of Jayalalithaa (even in her death). Women with control, willpower and ambition and India can be proud of such politicians. Mamata Banerjee taking on the Centre on demonetization to Smriti Irani reigning despite degree-politics. While trolls across social media remain sexist, politicians to spokerspersons, all went through the troughs and crest.
I hail the women who led the charge of breaking archaic laws about entry into temples and other places of workship. It is great that triple talaq grabbed global headlines. Nonetheless, I remain disdained over our law-and-order situation, the way rape cases are handled and the tortuous process of getting justice in harassment and other cases. Hopefully that will change too. For me, 2016 is the year where we cracked the ceiling with a hammer. Mothers came out proud, defending their right to motherhood and equally their right to work and deliver. Companies made a start in coming out loud about maternity leaves and gender diversity. Government stepped in, stronger with Beti Bachao Beti Padhao. Most of all, big thumbs up to the women who said enough is enough, let’s get down to rightfully reclaim our position.
Shaili Chopra is an award winning journalist and founder of SheThePeople.TV
