They have to fight hard to overturn gender discrimination
and deliver a sucker punch to convention. A woman’s journey from womb to
womanhood is the bumpiest in Haryana when compared to girls in other Indian
states. Born in a state with the country’s worst sex ratio (879 women every
1,000 men according to the 2011 census) and a worsening child sex ratio (just
834 girls for every 1,000 boys), women are often at the receiving end of
deep-set patriarchal prejudices. Here, marriage is a compulsory milestone, and
it arrives well before a girl completes her teens.
Those fortunate enough to finish their education have to
comply with their parents’ wishes and marry men chosen by them. Love is
considered a crime and those committing it have to face harsh punishment, even
death – the so-called ‘honour killing’ phenomenon – in extreme
cases.
Braving hostile circumstances, a minuscule minority of girls
is using its fists and reflexes to announce to the world that Haryanvi girls
are as good as, or even better than their male counterparts. The state once
infamous for suppressing the girl child is today a hub of wrestling and boxing
for girls, disciplines once meant just for the ‘stronger’ sex.
If, over the years, the Indian wrestling and boxing squad comprised the maximum number of men from the state, now women from the hinterland are also making their mark felt. Of the seven-member women’s wrestling squad at the ongoing Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, five – Geetika Jakhar, Babita Kumari, Vinesh Phogat, Lalita, who goes just by her first name and Sakshi Malik – hail from the state. In boxing, too, two of the three pugilists who boarded the plane to Glasgow – Pinki Jangra and Pooja Rani – belong to Haryana.
To know how these girls are chasing their dreams to change the perceptions of a khap-dominated society, Brunch travelled to Hisar, 230km from the state capital of Chandigarh, the district with the worst sex ratio (844/1,000) in Haryana. Hisar is the hometown of Commonwealth Games team members Geetika Jakhar, Pinki Jangra and Lalita.
If, over the years, the Indian wrestling and boxing squad comprised the maximum number of men from the state, now women from the hinterland are also making their mark felt. Of the seven-member women’s wrestling squad at the ongoing Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, five – Geetika Jakhar, Babita Kumari, Vinesh Phogat, Lalita, who goes just by her first name and Sakshi Malik – hail from the state. In boxing, too, two of the three pugilists who boarded the plane to Glasgow – Pinki Jangra and Pooja Rani – belong to Haryana.
To know how these girls are chasing their dreams to change the perceptions of a khap-dominated society, Brunch travelled to Hisar, 230km from the state capital of Chandigarh, the district with the worst sex ratio (844/1,000) in Haryana. Hisar is the hometown of Commonwealth Games team members Geetika Jakhar, Pinki Jangra and Lalita.
Jakhar, 28, was fortunate to be born in a family that let
her decide her own destiny. In 1999, her schoolteacher parents shifted from
Agroha village to Hisar in order to provide quality education to their
children. Initially, she got hooked to wrestling just to keep fit. But she soon
developed a fascination for the sport and within two years, became national
champion in her age group as well as in the seniors’ category. “I am
lucky that my parents supported my decisions. Today I’ve been able to achieve
my dreams because of them,” says the country’s first lady wrestler to be
conferred with the Arjuna Award.
- See more at:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/brunch/brunch-stories/the-fight-for-her-yana/article1-1244438.aspx#sthash.vB2bDuZf.dpuf
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