The Avengers are a world-renowned group of super-heroes, fighting injustice for the greater good with their signature suits, hammers, armours and shields. However, do you know about a similar group of super-heroes, wearing their signature saris, arms holding lathis, that strike fear into the hearts of wayward men? Meet the Gulabi Gang! Established by Sampat Pal Devi in 2006, the Gulabi Gang is a woman-led movement from Uttar Pradesh, against child marriage, the dowry system, female illiteracy, and a rigid caste system.
The name ‘Gulabi ’comes from the fact that all the members of the sister-hood wear bright pink saris, a symbol of femininity and its overlooked strength. The birth of the Gulabi Gang took place in the Banda district in Uttar Pradesh when an ordinary woman, Sampat Pal Devi, witnessed a man cruelly beating his wife. Upon pleading him to stop, she became a victim of abuse herself. The next day, she along with five other women carrying lathis, gave the abuser a taste of his own medicine. While this might seem like a sure path to a vicious circle of violent beginnings, it has helped women regain their right to equality and justice, especially in a state like Uttar Pradesh, one of the most unsafe Indian states for women with thousands of unreported criminal cases and a flawed justice system.
The movement aims to 'Support and train women to enhance their basic skills, become economically secure, and develop confidence to protect themselves from abuse through sustainable livelihood options.' The sisterhood has recently started helping arrange cost-effective solutions for weddings like tailoring the trousseau, catering for guests, flower arrangements, henna, and make-up services, which also provide employment. The Gulabi Gang has also helped in setting up women-led cottage industries and self-help groups, with an inspiring example of Prema Rambahori, a Dalit woman, who set up a leaf plate-making business in the Bangalipura community of Badausa village, with the help of Sampat Pal Devi.
The Gulabi Gang is no less than your favourite superheroes, for they, too, 'Protect the powerless from oppression and seek to make the world a better and equal place'- the definition of a true hero.
The ‘Gulabi Gang’ fighting for its rights'
#gulabi gang #courage #superheroes
Comments