Feminism is a historical movement from the ancient days till today. In the olden days, many women fought for gender equality, the right to vote, the right to work, the right to education, the right to own property, the right to maternity leaves, and marriage rights.
The word ‘Feminism’ comes from the Latin word where ‘Femin’ is a ‘Woman’ and the ‘ism’ is a suffix added to it that denotes precept. one who fights for women's rights is called a feminist.
In India feminism has started in the mid of 18th century by Men (Bengali Renaissance) and later on by women from Maharashtra named ‘Savitribai Phule’ who started their first girls’ school in India in the year 1848. Later on, many women fought for casteism, the sati system, child marriage, and widow-remarriage.
Indian feminism can be summarised into three stages as follows:
● 1850–1915 first stage: In this stage, they have fought for societal problems such as democracy, gender equality, and individual rights. They have mainly fought on the sati system, the right to educate women and allow widow-remarriage. However, the thwart in enhancing the status of women in India continued till the 19th century. In the 19th century, there was a change in the age of marriage for women.
● 1915–1947 second stage: In this stage, Woman’s prominent activities were expanded and legitimized by Gandhi to take charge of non-violent movement towards British raj. In the early, 1920s the All India Women’s conference has emerged under the guidance of Mahatma Gandhi.
● Post-1947 third stage: In this stage, even after the independence, the All India women’s conference has been continued. Later on by the Indian communist party, The National Federation of Indian Women has come to light in 1954. Hereafter women have fought for equal pay, maternal health care, the right to work in politics, and many more.
Wrapping up: The above statements gives you the outline of feminism in India, how it started and continued to bring the modern era for the well-being of woman in India.
