Introduction and Interviews by Anupama Krishnakumar and Vani Viswanathan
India is one of the few countries where womanhood is extremely intriguing: do we respect our women or do we subjugate them? Our religious texts extol them, and yet slot them into defined, confined roles. Extreme importance is placed on the ‘honour’ of a man, so much so that rape and domestic violence are means of showing power play between males and females. The country’s ancient greatness, rich diversity and recent modern advancements seem to have had only mild effect on half of the country’s population.
Inspite of that, it is heartening to see women making their mark in various fields, some excelling really well in their chosen area. Among them, we really are proud of those who drive change through their work. These are ladies who stand testimony to the fact that women can do well to bring about change, notably in the lives of fellow humans.
It’s their vision, their actions and ultimately the spirit of achievement that Spark salutes. Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud to present four wonderful women who, through their initiatives, are striving hard to start conversations, influence mindsets and drive change in diverse and significant areas including education, human rights, feminist publishing and blogging that focuses on societal issues concerning women.
We speak to Shaheen Mistri, CEO of Teach For India, a nationwide movement that aims to end educational inequity in India. As an 18-year old, Shaheen Mistri walked into a slum in Mumbai and began teaching. She later on went to set up Akanksha Foundation, an NGO that works primarily in the field of education. Today, she is the CEO of Teach For India (TFI). In her interview to Spark, Shaheen Mistri talks about her personal journey with Akanksha, her views on the Indian education system and the relevance of social entrepreneurship in today’s world.
Meet Mallika Dutt, CEO of Breakthrough, a human rights organization in India and the U.S. promoting human dignity, gender-based equality and justice through the use of pop culture and grassroots-level education. In her interview to Spark, Mallika Dutt talks about her journey with Breakthrough and one of their most successful campaigns, the Bell Bajao campaign.
We are pleased to present an interview with Urvashi Butalia, Director of Zubaan Books. In 1984, Urvashi Butalia co-founded India’s first feminist publishing house, Kali for Women and then went on to establish Zubaan Books in 2003. In her interview to Spark, she talks about her journey with Kali for Women, about Zubaan and about feminist literature and publishing in India.
Last but not the least, we catch up with Indian Homemaker, who is the author of the popular blog – The Life and Times of an Indian Homemaker. Indian Homemaker’s posts tread heavily on societal issues specially concerning women, such as violence against women, intolerance, against the use of tradition, culture and religion “to justify anything that common sense might refuse to accept”. In her interview to Spark, she speaks on issues that she deals with on her blog, her views on feminism in India and the state of women in urban India today.
Each of these interviews showed to us the confidence that brims in all these women and revealed the intelligence that sparkles in each of them. We sincerely hope this is just a start for better times to come!
Catch all the interviews using the links below.
Fighting Educational Inequity – An interview with Shaheen Mistri by Anupama Krishnakumar
Bringing Human Rights Home – An interview with Mallika Dutt by Vani Viswanathan
Giving Voice to Women – An interview with Urvashi Butalia by Anupama Krishnakumar
Discussing Issues Concerning Women – An interview with Indian Homemaker by Vani Viswanathan
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