Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
The upcoming movie Dangal trailer shows us the father who overcomes his early disappointment at not having a son - and soon becomes the biggest supporter of his daughters.
The upcoming movie Dangal shows us the father who overcomes his early disappointment at not having a son – and soon becomes the biggest supporter of his daughters. A toast to every such Indian dad!
Gender bias is still predominant in many parts of India. Even now, a majority of families crave for a son to carry on their lineage and shoulder the family responsibilities. On the other hand, our country is also witnessing many progressive families who have shunned this orthodox thought that only sons can bring glory. Couples and families have embraced what they have been blessed with. Love, care, education is what shapes a person and gender takes a back seat for them. I belong to one such family.
That is why maybe, the upcoming movie Dangal’s trailer, as excellent as it is, hits home – the father’s initial disappointment in not having a son to carry forward his wrestling legacy, then embracing the potential of his daughters and coaching them to be the best in the field. Finally comes the fierce pride in his daughters and what they have made of themselves.
I am the second of three daughters. For a very long time, gender discrimination was a theoretical concept for me. The three of us were enrolled in an all-girls missionary school where the Sisters treated every girl as a go-getter. Succinctly put, I had a childhood that every girl would dream of – a doting father, disciplinarian mother (well, someone had to be!), and the prospect of unlimited opportunities. As I transitioned through the different phases of life after I left home – hostel-college life, working bachelorette, then married and settled working woman, I became deeply aware of the things I had taken for granted.
I realized that the privileges my parents had given us was a bubble. No, the world is not the same! There have been innumerable instances in which being a female has weighted the odds against me. There are still many times when the rude and obvious injustice makes my blood boil. But no, this piece is not about me ranting about those incidents; it is about the strength that makes me stand with my head held up high despite of it.
While I was out in the big bad world making a space for myself and fighting away the gender preconceptions in my own way, my Dad has also evolved as a father. He shares his feminist and liberal views as passionately as he taught us Maths and Physics. There have been desert-storm, or rather should I say, ‘Dangal’ phases in my life when I almost broke down to accept the setbacks and reconcile with fate. But always, my Dad has pulled me up and helped me shake off the defeat I almost admitted to.
My Dad is no wrestler, but he has taught me never to give up and always stand up to fight for the morals I believe in. My Dad has not been honoured by any award to felicitate the values he has given us, but for me, he is my God who, I know, is always looking out for me.
A realist...but at first prefers to see the glass half full and then half empty. A staunch feminist, liberal thinker... hope to be a part of the progressive change in our country.. read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
Children should be taught to aspire to be successful, but success doesn't have to mean an IIT admission only!
Imagine studying for 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 whole years for the JEE exam only to find out that there’s only a very, very slim chance of getting into an IIT. It is a fact widely acknowledged that the IIT-JEE is one of the toughest exams not just in India but in the whole world. Apart from IITs, the NITs and IIITs of India also accept the JEE scores for admission. There are said to be a total of 23 IITs, 31 NITs and 25 IIITs across the country.
Now, let’s first get a few facts about the IITs right. First, according to the NIRF rankings of 2023, only 17 IITs rank in the top 50 engineering colleges of India and only a few (around 5) IITs are in the list of the world’s top 100 engineering colleges. Second, the dropout rate of IIT-qualifying students stands at least at 20%, with reasons being cited ranging from academic pressure and unmanageable workload to caste discrimination and high levels of competition within the IIT.
So, it’s quite clear that the journey of making it through IIT is as challenging as the journey of getting into an IIT. Third and most important of all, the acceptance rate or the odds of getting into an IIT are below 3% which is a lot lower than the acceptance rate of highly and very highly ranked US universities. Four, getting into an IIT of one’s choice doesn’t mean one will also get into a branch of one’s preference at that IIT.
Please enter your email address