A new generation of anti-status-quoists is unapologetic about its beliefs, unafraid about whom it is taking on and unfettered by the hackneyed script. No careers were brought down. No global hashtags were created. No roars reverberated throughout the world. And yet, women in India continued chipping away at that edifice called patriarchy. In a year that began badly with the molestation of women on the streets of Bengaluru, it might seem out of place to chalk up gender victories. But as the year ended, there was cause for hope. This was a year when the women’s cricket team captain, Mithali…

A new generation of anti-status-quoists is unapologetic about its beliefs, unafraid about whom it is taking on and unfettered by the hackneyed script It was a year of assertion with disc jockey Varnika Kundu packing her VIP stalkers, including the son of the Haryana BJP chief, off to jail and thousands supporting her with the hashtag #AintNoCinderella.(Ravi Kumar/Hindustan Times) No careers were brought down. No global hashtags were created. No roars reverberated throughout the world. And yet, women in India continued chipping away at that edifice called patriarchy. In a year that began badly with the molestation of women on…

Every woman has a story, the man who ‘accidentally’ touches her in the metro, the schoolboys who chase her in the park for sport, the masturbating pervert late at night on the bus. We learn to ignore it – rule #1 of the street: never, ever make eye contact – but sometimes it spills over into a serious crime. And, always it’s our fault. An Indian woman who has never had to deal with molestation on public transportation and in open spaces is a rare species. For too many of us, commuting to school, college and work is an everyday…

Every woman has a story, the man who ‘accidentally’ touches her in the metro, the schoolboys who chase her in the park for sport, the masturbating pervert late at night on the bus. We learn to ignore it – rule #1 of the street: never, ever make eye contact – but sometimes it spills over into a serious crime. And, always it’s our fault. Delhi University students pay tribute on the second anniversary of the December 16 rape case, New Delhi(Ajay Aggarwal/ Hindustan Times) An Indian woman who has never had to deal with molestation on public transportation and in…

Just picking up a musical instrument is an act of courage for Zohra, Afghanistan’s first all-woman orchestra When the call came, she was home at Kunar for her holidays. Negin Khapalwak had just got admission into the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, the only music school in her country. But there was a problem. The then 14-year-old had not yet told her parents that she had applied. When she was nine, Negin’s father had packed her off to live in Kabul in an orphanage — not because she was an orphan but because that was the only way he could…

Just picking up a musical instrument is an act of courage for Zohra, Afghanistan’s first all-woman orchestra. When the call came, she was home at Kunar for her holidays. Negin Khapalwak had just got admission into the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, the only music school in her country. But there was a problem. The then 14-year-old had not yet told her parents that she had applied. When she was nine, Negin’s father had packed her off to live in Kabul in an orphanage — not because she was an orphan but because that was the only way he could…

Delhi’s well-off function as independent city-states with their own security, water filtration and supply, power back-ups and, now, air purifiers. Our kids don’t study in government schools, we don’t use public transport, we don’t seek treatment at government hospitals. With no stake in public services, we don’t demand better quality or, for that matter, any quality at all. Just as surely as the seasons change, our angst at the state of our cities will pass. The capital’s toxic air will cede to other crises. Again. In Chennai and Mumbai, the annual rite of monsoon flooding will hold sway, then the…

The right to life, guaranteed by our Constitution, is incomplete without the right to die. Individuals must be allowed to choose how to live their lives, or end them, without being judged by religious leaders or hampered by their country’s laws. HT Image The woman in the video is talking about joy, life and laughter. She holds her husband’s hand as they walk through the woods. She takes a plate of food outdoors for a picnic lunch. She packs her bag as if preparing for a trip. She does not look like a woman who has chosen to die. But…

Behind an outsourced list of sexual predators is the story of a law that often doesn’t work in favour of the women it is supposed to protect In January this year, the Indian National Bar Association published one of the largest surveys of some 6,000 people across India, 78% of whom were women. It found that 68% of victims avoided reporting workplace sexual harassment(HT photo/Arijit Sen) I don’t like anonymous lists, that is lists that purport to name sexual predators compiled by one person on the say-so of other unnamed persons. I don’t like them because I subscribe to old…

Behind an outsourced list of sexual predators is the story of a law that often doesn’t work in favour of the women it is supposed to protect. I don’t like anonymous lists, that is lists that purport to name sexual predators compiled by one person on the say-so of other unnamed persons. I don’t like them because I subscribe to old school journalism (attribute, get-the-other-side, verify). I don’t like them because they legitimise all sorts of lists from ‘shameless women’ to ‘dog haters’. But mainly I don’t like them because I believe that women are better and must be better.…

The price of speaking up is simply too high. We have a law, but most companies remain mindful of hierarchies that make it easy for powerful men to prey on subordinate women. When it comes to the crunch, who’s more dispensable, the boss or the one who reports to him? Our Harvey Weinstein moment is passing by in deafening silence. Sure, #MeToo tells us how depressingly pervasive sexual harassment and assault is all over the world. And, yet revelations that Hollywood’s most powerful producer is a creep has not emboldened similar whistle-blowing here in India.(AFP) Did you know he…? Oh,…

The price of speaking up is simply too high. We have a law, but most companies remain mindful of hierarchies that make it easy for powerful men to prey on subordinate women. When it comes to the crunch, who’s more dispensable, the boss or the one who reports to him? Did you know he…? Oh, we knew better than to enter his cabin alone. Yeah, she complained but left the job when no action was taken. This should have been the moment when the gossip swirling around water coolers burst into the open, leading to discussion on social media, letters…