Contrasted fate of the Girl Child on TV - which would you choose?

Looking into the portrayal of women in television in recent times led me into considering two daily soaps – 1) Mitwa – Phool Kamal Ke and 2) Sabki Laadli Bebo. The two soaps have a contrasted approach to the girl child.

Mitwa – Phool Kamal Ke depicts the story of a family in UP, where rigid caste system and traditions are practiced – and humanity is secondary. The story is of Sargam who gets married to one of the sons of the Choudhry family. The family abhors a girl child and all women in the household have to undergo a prenatal sex detection test to ensure that only male children are born and all female foetuses are aborted, irrespective of the feelings of the mother. Sargam finds out during the sex determination test of her foetus that she is carrying a female child. She lies to the family members about the sex of her unborn child and decides to keep the girl child.

Sabki Laadli Bebo on the other hand tells the story of a family that craves for a daughter, and finally gets a girl child after three sons. Everyone calls her Bebo, and being the only girl child in the family, she is heavily pampered and protected by her parents and three brothers. Her family tries finding her a suitable groom when she comes of marriageable age, but can’t find anyone who would love her as much as she is loved in the family.

Both are social realities - but it is up to you to choose which one you would have. Be humane - stop female foeticide. Log on to log on to http://www.laadli.org/ or sms LAADLI to 575758 to pledge your support.

I came across this very interesting ad today. Just take a look at this:

We all know that Indira Gandhi was probably the strongest Prime Minister that India has had, and she was a woman. She is still referred to as the “only man” that the cabinet had then. Could you think of any man as a replacement for her?

Stop sex selection. It’s a crime against humanity. Log on to log on to http://www.laadli.org/ or sms LAADLI to 575758 to pledge your support.

Will you let this happen to your unborn baby angel?

I caught a quick repeat show of Ice Age yesterday, this time of course with a special friend! I just had to share the “Peaches” experience with him… and he loved her as well! Now I’m sitting at my work desk, writing this entry in the 1st breather that I’ve been able to catch. I just came across a couple of ads which hit me even in the midst of the “Peaches” euphoria – everyday phenomena that we often seem to take as a way of life.

Are girls always to be confined to the typical roles that society has meted out to them? Why should Sita be doing the chores while Ram enjoys a hearty meal?


Why should education be a prerogative of the male child? Why can’t the name read “Aarti” instead of “Akash”?

Look at the tilt in balance. Does it bother you as a thinking individual?

Killing the unborn female foetus is tilting the balance further still…. The foetus that you are destroying today could be your source of strength tomorrow. All she needs is just a chance.

Refrain from female foeticide and stop others around you! Believe it or not… you vote counts. Take that step and log on to log on to http://www.laadli.org/ or sms LAADLI to 575758 to pledge your support.

The cutest girl in town – ‘Peaches’!

I’m back in Mumbai and I can’t tell you enough how great it feels. I went out with a couple of friends and we headed for the theatres. I wanted to watch something nice and cute, so we decided on Ice Age 3. And I came out of the hall smiling from ear to ear! It was such good fun and to have great friends to share it with – just made my day.

All the characters were cuutee – but I just can’t get over ‘Peaches’! She’s the cutest baby girl around and her parents are so proud of her. Peaches – you rock baby!

Killing the female foetus – the worst form of gender discrimination

The last couple of weeks have been grueling. I have always loved travelling and meeting people, but I never thought that meeting people would open up such a dark side of the society. Just take a look at these facts –
Repeated abortion adversely affects the sexual and reproductive health of the women.
Sex selection and subsequent abortions adversely impact the mental health of women. They are laden with guilt for inability to produce a son. And it is none other than their family members who force this sense of guilt upon them.
Reducing number of girls, increases dependence on men
Shortage of women escalates incidents of:
– forced abduction, kidnap of girls
– trafficking for marriage
– sex slavery, flesh trade
– forced polyandry (Panchali system, Modern Draupadis)
– swap marriages (Aata -Saata)
– sexual violence
Sex selection is a medical ethics/ malpractice issue. Speak up against it. Log on to log on to www.laadli.org or sms LAADLI to 575758 to pledge your support.

Give the girl child a chance... she's just as precious!

I am touring some of the remotest villages in Maharashtra and further south for my assignment. Yesterday, I had taken appointments with a couple of doctors at the village dispensaries and also hoped to meet up with the mobile health care people touring these parts. The doctors had all promised cooperation and most importantly, facts. Everything seemed to be going as per the schedule and I was sure that I would be able to finish everything that I intended to do by the end of the day, until I went for my second appointment.

I was asked to wait outside for a while by the doctor, as she was attending a patient. I waited for around 20 minutes when I saw the woman leave, escorted by the doctor, as she was howling. I was not sure what to do, so I waited for sometime longer. The doctor spoke to the lady for another couple of minutes and when she returned, I saw her face was flushed. She called me in.

Before I could ask what was wrong, she started talking, very angrily, almost shouting. The story shocked me. The woman, who had just left, has a nine month old baby girl. She had suffered from severe malnutrition during her first pregnancy and she was just 18. The doctor had asked her not to try for a child for the next two years for it could affect her very adversely.

Since no one at her in-laws was happy at the birth of a girl child, they had forced her to get pregnant a second time, inspite of the severe, even fatal consequences. And now they wanted her to go through a gender determination test for the foetus, so that they could abort it, if it was a female child. At this, she had pleaded for reason from her husband and in-laws. But all of it had fallen to deaf ears. She had been threatened that if she didn’t go through the test and delivered a female child again, she would be abandoned with her two girls and her husband would remarry.

I was dumbfounded. I didn’t know what to say and just kept staring at the doctor. I was too shocked to get back to work and my whole schedule went for a toss. The world that I see out here is so different from where I come that I sometimes don’t know how to cope with it. I urge all you people out there, spare 2 minutes of your time and vote for stricter laws against female foeticide. Log on to log on to www.laadli.org or sms LAADLI to 575758 to pledge your support. Be human and give the unborn girl child a chance!

Pledge against female foeticide, make Laadli a success!

The vicious business of sex determination for a foetus is rampant – and not just in rural India. The practice is widespread among numerous so called well to do, educated families. Just take a look at these figures:

• 27 lac crimes related to illegal sex determination every year
• Cases registered all over India = 454
• Convictions only 10!

It’s shameful to be a thinking and feeling human being and sit there doing nothing. It just takes 5 minutes… take the initiative and stop female foeticide. I’m rooting for the cause on Facebook. Look for Sukanya Sharma and join my cause Me against Female Foeticide. Pledge against sex selection. SMS LAADLI to 575758. Log on to www.laadli.org