Few women wear feminism as a badge these days. Why wave a flag when you can choose the life you want they ask.
“Feminism means the freedom to define myself as a person and not as a woman. Gender is incidental and biology inevitable, so why harp on it?” says Shivani Tibrewala,
director of No License Yet Productions, a theatre company.
Tibrewala is not the only one to believe in a redefined feminism. Many other women echo her view. They do not fit into the 70s women’s lib caricature but hold strong
beliefs and opinions anyway. Aninya Ahluwalia is a 19-year-old engineering student who feels that any woman who asks for equal rights is tagged a feminist.
“The term itself is very wrongly used. I think every individual, male or female, has the right to have a mind of his/her own, make decisions and voice opinions. Just because you are highly opinionated and have the power to speak your mind does not make you a feminist.”
What started in the late 19th century as the feminist movement has now become a part of the urban woman’s mindset. So much so that she doe not find it necessary or important to call herself feminist. Some in fact connect a lot of negativity to the tag. Says Pooja Sachdev, a 55-year-old housewife: “In the 60s when I was in college, we were proud to call ourselves feminists. I don’t see that in the present generation.” Most youngsters the reporters spoke to believe that feminism is more an issue of individual liberty than a marker that divides the sexes. A lot of this perhaps has also to do with the fact that men themselves have changed.
“Women today have many more opportunities than they did once,” says Prarthana Channa, a 22-year-old advertising professional. “This has to do with education and a change in social attitudes.”
The radical feminism of the kind witnessed in the 60s and 70s does not appeal to Gen Y. They don’t feel the need to shout out their need for individuality. Roma Dutia, a 16-year-old student, says she is not sure she wants to be defined as a feminist. To many feminism, is all about rallies and demonstrations. “Carrying banners and shouting slogans to tell the world you want to be able to live your life on your own terms seem like a farce to me. All such events usually take a political turn.”
Today’s woman would like feminism to be a part of a larger canvas. They believe in equality for not just women but everyone else too. The power to choose and to make decisions is their definition of feminism and liberation. “Freedom is to be doing what one wants to do, based on choices one exercises, without being restricted by role stereotypes, or conditioning, or on irrational notions of respectful, ideal behaviour. It is the right to think for oneself and one’s own happiness as much for one’s
family’s,” says the 35 year old HR consultant Lata Iyer.
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