Some people cry very often, others cannot feel anything. Some neglect self-care, others put in extra effort to look better than they feel. Some need to sleep long hours, others cannot sleep altogether. Some overeat, others do not have an appetite at all. Some try to talk to the ones they trust and are close to and work through their problems, others feel like there is no point in talking. Women in India, often live this divide every day.
Not many people understand just how hard it is for someone who feels alone, lonely and invisible when she is treated as ‘secondary’ in the social strata. Some of these women are brave enough to come forward and assert themselves and break the social shackles to move forward in life which is their first major achievement. Thereafter, their cycle of achievements begins, as they grow and make a mark in society as not only mothers, daughters, sisters and wives but also as working professionals. For instance, Draupadi Murmu, the 15 th President of India, is the first tribal person to become President. She has faced many trials and tribulations and early years of struggle including personal crisis where she lost her husband, two sons, mother and a brother, within a span of seven years. Yet, the 64-year-old neither lost her conviction nor her balance that elevated her to the highest office in the country. This is not just the story of an inspirational woman and a tribal leader who has also been a stateswoman with a solid political career behind her but also the story of a woman of substance, a woman who is a self-believer, a woman ready to face the world and a woman with a ‘never say die’ attitude.
People need to keep in mind that everyone struggles. While these struggles may look minor compared to others, it needs to be understood that it is not a competition. What might seem small to one person, may hold a bigger meaning to someone else. It may just be a small beginning for bigger achievements. Women have come a long way from those small steps and have broken the glass ceiling several times while proving their mettle in various fields. Be it Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian woman to become an astronaut, Mary Kom, the boxer, Arunima Sinha, the Mount Everest girl or Avani Chakrabarti, the sky warrior, all the women achievers are those who had their ‘mind set’ on achievement.
– By Aradhya Mohan (XII – H)
