Interview
In the distant, dusty valleys of Ladakh, there sits a 2-year-old boy all alone with a dry & grubby face covered with a bedsheet tent along with a dupatta tied to his waist that prevents him from falling off the ridge & also from crawling to the middle of the Leh-Kargil highway, where on the other side, works his middle-aged mother as a construction laborer.
Torrential rain poured over his blue raincoat as environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk walked on the 15th day of the Delhi Chalo Padyatra. Spanning nearly 1000 km from the mountains of Leh to the capital city of New Delhi, the Ramon Magsaysay Award winner led over 75 Ladakh residents through the unrelenting terrains of Himachal Pradesh to reach Delhi by 2nd October, 2024. “It’s all in the mind”, Mr. Wangchuk declared in an exclusive interview with The Womb in Lahaul, when asked of the difficulties they are facing while on the way. Adorning a traditional Himachali topi and a white scarf, he was not fazed by the hardships they encountered during the march.
Most women are forced into Prostitution due to Poverty: Women of the Bachhada community seemingly have a choice – either get married or take on sex-work as a profession. Those who choose the former, live a married household life and are not allowed to entertain any clients for sex work. But those whose family conditions leave them with no choice, opt for sex-work and then have practically zero chances of getting married later. In exceptional cases, where a sex worker does find a love interest and if the partner is willing to marry, then there is some hope for their marriage, but that too is usually inter-caste, as men from the same community do not take women who have opted for sex work as their legally wedded wives.
Thank you for taking the time to explore my work, ideas and influences. First of all, my overall research interest as a Social Historian, is the experiences of historically marginalized people: enslaved Africans, indentured Asians (in particular Indians), left behind men and boys, women (including enslaved women and household workers).
One in every three girls around the world do not have access to proper sanitation facilities. The data speaks a lot about the discrimination faced by menstruating people around the world leading to periods illiteracy amongst the mass as well as sanitation industry. In India specifically, 71% of the menstruating girls remain unaware of menstruation until their first cycle and the culture of shame related to menstruation has ensured the lack of awareness on menstrual products. Studies indicate that most girls do not have consistent access to good-quality menstrual hygiene products with 88% of women and girls in India using homemade alternatives, such as old cloth, rags, hay, sand or ash making them susceptible to all kinds of diseases.
In this extremely candid and honest conversation, hear about the journey of Ms. Shamim Modi, who was a city girl, but then got engaged passionately in the fight of the Adivasis and workers. From her experiences of working on building a grassroots movement to choosing to enter into electoral politics, Shamim shares very interesting and heart-touching anecdotes from her journey.
The Womb Team spoke to Ms. Prachi Mehta, who is an internationally accredited Mediator and is the Founder of TAG – the ADR Group, a venture which provides mediation services…
The Womb team travelled to a beautiful village – Lamahatta, nestled in the hills near Darjeeling, West Bengal.
We spoke to Rasmani ji and her two talented daughters. In the pouring rains, in the hills, we speak of life in Lamahatta, women’s occupations here, and what’s the gender equation or power dynamics like?
The Womb team met Ms. Rachna Pradhan, Deputy Ranger, posted in Senchal Wildlife Sanctuary, Darjeeling, West Bengal. She spoke to us about her work, what does it look like on a day to day basis, and why should young people, especially women consider joining this profession. Ms. Rachna is an inspiring young woman, breaking stereotypes in more ways than one and doing so in style. Do watch and subscribe to the womb channel for similar videos.
I had only seen the Madhubani style paintings in Dilli Haat Market in Delhi. I was blown away with the intricate design, bold use of colours and the selection of the themes that felt almost surreal. So, when I got a chance to visit Madhubani, a small city, 26 kms away from Darbhanga in eastern Bihar, I was delighted beyond words. Madhubani is the origin place of Madhubani paintings, also known as Mithila paintings.