STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

Growing up, I never understood the gigantic role the word ‘girl’ had to play in my life. I grew up in a
sheltered, protected world that allowed for me to pursue my goals in the way I intended and to the
extent I deemed appropriate. It wasn’t until the 7 th grade that the difference between a ‘boy’ and a ‘girl’
became blatantly apparent to me – when I was told to participate in a debate competition. The topic
was ‘Are boys better students than girls?’. It’s more ludicrous than juvenile, one might feel. My very
first question was – Why is this even a question? Is there something that makes a girl lesser than a
boy? Are we unequal for some reason, and if so why? These queries created an uneasiness in my
mind, one that couldn’t be explained. I guess it was safe to say that my parents did a brilliant job of
not just protecting me, but in allowing me to believe that there was nothing in the world that makes me
inferior, let alone my gender. Going out in to the real world, however, taught me that there were cold,
hard lessons to be learnt.

As time went on, I slowly started to see it. ‘It’ being the patriarchy, the misogyny and the absolute
hypocrisy of it all – the difference in the way I was treated as opposed to a boy in my class, or
anywhere for that matter. It eventually led to several mind-numbing revelations during my journey as a
young adult. An illustrative experience would be the Great Debacle of 2011, as I’d like to call it. In the
9th grade, five boys in the midst of a sleepover, turned up at my doorstep at 3:00AM one fateful
weekend. As a joke, they decided to shout, yell and scream out my name in the middle of the road.
They repeatedly called my home-phone, demanding my immediate presence downstairs. To this day,
the memory of the incident brings shivers to my spine. ‘A 14-year old girl, awake in fear at night
wondering what’s going to happen next’ – an apt way to describe how I felt that day. After my father
raised a complaint in school, the consequences that ensued post that can be described as just that -
Consequences. A simple illustration of said consequence was the fact that I was made to stand in the
middle of my entire class, questioned as to why these boys came to my house, not anyone else’s. I
was demanded an explanation – Why was it, that I was targeted and not any other girl? – Did I incite
these boys? Or did I orchestrate the whole thing by inviting them over, to begin with? By implication I
was officially that girl, now. The girl with the questionable morale. And the boys? Well. They’re young,
and of course this was nothing but a youthful indiscretion on their part, right? Right. Because that’s
how it was seen.

That day was a pivotal moment in my journey as a young woman, but more importantly as a Feminist.
I didn’t know what the word meant, nor did I know why it existed. But I knew that my femininity, and
my very being was being, and probably will forever be attacked in more ways than one. I knew I was
one of hundreds of voices that wasn’t being heard, on the smallest, most miniscule level – and it was
during this time at the tender of age of thirteen, that I decided to become a lawyer.

To this day I cannot accurately explain to anyone why I chose law. My reasons, however can be
described as a means to an end. I wanted to be the voice for women – one that came with a sense of
authority that couldn’t be questioned. During my tenure as a law student, I walked alongside Nelson
Mandela in his fight against racial discrimination, sought courage from Margaret Thatcher during times
my leadership was questioned on account of being a ‘weak girl’, and rode alongside Jhansi Ki Rani in
her rebellion against the British. I sought hope from those who stayed true to their cause and made
the difference they could – and during my many encounters with these revolutionaries, I realized I
didn’t have to look too far for inspiration. All I had to do was try.

My internship at a Bangalore-based NGO called Action Aid was a defining moment in my life. The
focal point of my internship was ‘Women in the context of alcohol usage and its effects’, and majorly
involved field work. I visited HIV female victims from an associate foundation called Milana. I visited
sex workers who were willing to share the atrocities they’re made to go through by the virtue of the
work they do. An interesting experience was the one I had during my visit to Nimhans Hospital. The
Principal Professor of Psychology talked to us about the basic differences that exist in the psyche of
female and male alcoholics – “Men find reasons to blame, outside of themselves. Women self-
deprecate and blame themselves for things that go wrong.” That sentence spoke more to me than any
person in the world could have. I went back to every thing that ever went wrong in my life, and the
need I felt to blame no one but myself, as a result. This experience was so much more than just an
internship – it reinstated my need and want to fight for the plight of women. Be it sexual abuse,
harassment or the stigma we’re consequently subjected to.

The women who inspired me aren’t limited to the ones I encountered during my time at ActionAid. My
litigation internship under the mentorship of Advocate and Mediator Susheela Sarathi was another
critical juncture in my life. While the internship was instrumental in refining my skills in civil litigation,
I’d like to think it played a much bigger role in my life than just that. This was owed to Susheela
ma’am’s very presence and being. The way she took charge over a case, argued it before a judge,
and with the kind of conviction in her voice that wouldn’t waver even if tremors shook the very ground
we stood upon. Her strength, coupled with her kindness encompassed her power. During the course
of the internship, Susheela ma’am mandated our presence at every mediation proceeding at the
Family Court, and for good reason, I’d like to think. It was something I looked forward to every single
day during my time with her. The reasons are three-fold – One, a lot of the mediations involved
couples who were considering divorce which invariably exposed me to a different set of women every
single day, each with their own set of grievances and unique circumstances. Two, the other cases
involved mediations relating to property and estate-related issues which primarily involved men,
sometimes even ten to fifteen of them in a single room. Lastly, having the privilege of witnessing
Susheela ma’am’s prowess in handling them all. With the victimized women, Susheela ma’am proved
to be an absolute beacon of hope. “Your chunni is merely an adornment, much like your marriage.
You can walk in public without it. Life goes on, and so will you.”, she’d say. And to the ever-aggressive
men who’d squabble over how much money’s at stake, she’d give them just a look – one look to the
ten odd men and the entire room would go silent. Susheela ma’am went about her day thinking, “I’ve
got a job to do”, unknowing of how much she impacted me with her words and actions each day. Each
day was a reminder that if I really wanted to be a woman in power, I could be – and it was because of
her. I learnt that I could even do myself one better and be a woman in power and uplift other women
to power, too. Susheela ma’am was the very embodiment of the voice I wanted to be for women, and
is an inspiration to me, to this day.

While ActionAid and Susheela ma’am fueled me to pursue my passion for Women’s rights –
IndJustice, my first online legal-writing internship opportunity gave me the medium required to convert
said passion to reality. I was afforded an opportunity to alternatively choose my topics for their blog,
which they’d upload every five days post my research and drafting of the article. When allowed to
choose the theme, I picked topics of importance to women. I wrote about the recent Triple Talaq
judgement, the #Metoo movement, and even about the plight of women in the context of employment.
While I also wrote about other legalities of importance, it was these particular pieces that stood out in
my quest for Women’s Rights. I understood there existed a plethora of problems in the Feminist
context, and the number of factors that influenced the same. For example, Race, religion, culture,
class, caste, creed – are all metrics that boiled down to the important role of intersectionality in the
waves of Feminism, which I couldn’t have known if not for having written and researched about them.
I understood the role a simple piece of writing could have on the minds of people, during this
internship and how the knowledge I now have is capable of changing perspective provided I write. At
this juncture, I realized the role my legal prowess coupled with my flair for writing could play in my
quest for Women Empowerment. And so, my attempt to put pen to paper didn’t end there. I began my
very own blog on Feminism on the platform ‘WordPress’ and also submitted an essay to the 2018
Dastur Essay Writing Competition on the ‘Misconceptions of Feminism’ – both of which only
contributed to my journey as a Feminist writer.

I think the only an apt concluding remark in this context is – ‘My path is unorthodox, and a profoundly
unconventional one.’ By the virtue of its unconventionality, it’s caused various doubts, fears, and
insecurities as to my career path. But I am certain of one thing – I want to make a difference, even if in
the smallest possible way. For this, I need not just a pvilatform that allows for succinct articulation of
my thoughts, but more importantly, people with similar mindsets. A simple viewing of the Vimochana
website tells me I’ve come to the right place owing to how committed this organization is, to make a
difference. Given the opportunity, I won’t just be an invaluable asset, but will work towards the
purpose and beliefs with which Vimochana operates, and it will be nothing but an honour. Thank you.