Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay – the Lotus
Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay was the youngest girl in her family who entered the world in 1903. Standing true to her name, she did exactly what a lotus does – shine and bloom amid the muddy, clouded water. While the remainder of India was busy oppressing women in her generation, her family, on the contrary, was a progressive Brahmin family from Mangaluru, also famously known as Mangalore today. She didn’t bag the title of ‘the first woman in her family to become a revolutionary’, and she was proud, more importantly grateful about the fact. Her great grandmother, grandmother, and mother had been an active part of bringing a change and Kamaladevi was no exception. She, too, since a tender age was prepared to continue the legacy of activism in her family.
It’s no exaggeration to say that activism was her second skin. Between all that support came the ‘mud’ – the societal pressure. At the adolescent age of 14, she was married off and hardly 2 years later, the tag of a widow got added to her name. 100 years later in 2023, women are still shamed for concepts like widowing and divorce. So to expect Kamaladevi to be free of those shackles was a ridiculous idea. She had to go out in the world and live. Sure, her family gave her immense support in the four walls but it’s unideal to think that everyone will treat her the same way. This ignited in her the fire to educate widows and give them the strength to obtain schooling and become independent. Now, that made her a feminist of her times.
During those times, while people collectively, regardless of gender were coming together to free India from the shackles of the British, women were making individual efforts to change the narrative about females. Kamaladevi, like most patriots, was greatly inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s ideas but at the same time, from her feminist perspective, she disregarded and criticized the idea of not allowing women to be a part of protests and marches. She was of the mindset that women should be given equal rights to show their sacrifice and patriotism towards the country and no discrimination should be made. She pushed forward the approach that everyone should be looked upon as ‘Indians’, not ‘male’ or ‘female’ Indians.
By 1923, she became a member of the Congress party, and three years later, she marked the feat of being the first woman in India to run for political office. Competing for a seat at the Madras Legislative Assembly, she lost by a mere 55 votes but did not fail to make a point about women’s participation in politics. She shows to us that winning is just a bonus. The effect and inspiration you spread in the world by just participating is worthwhile, far more significant than getting that trophy, that reward. She was also the first woman to be arrested by the British.
Today, our country has allowed us freedom of speech, choice, religion, movement, and much more. But, what it took to reach here remains brushed under the rug for more than 7 decades. Even now, many of us are unaware of the true meaning of some terms we happen to use loosely. ‘Feminism’ is the most misunderstood and misused terminology in the 21st century after the word ‘God’.
The definition of ‘feminism’ has been adulterated and polluted. Feminism is not a new or a ‘Gen Z’ thing – it has existed longer than some of us believe. But what has changed is, the perception of it. Today, feminism is more about ‘anti-man’ than ’empowering’. Today, feminists are focused on bringing men down instead of uplifting the vulnerable. In that case, how are we any different than misogynistic, patriarchal men? We’re doing the exact same thing but as women. We’re encouraging ‘revenge’ in the name of feminism and that’s not what that word originally means. Sushant Divgikr, a trans woman, told in her podcast with Beer Biceps, “Feminism is not about supporting women. Don’t go by the word. If you believe in uplifting the weaker people and believe that everyone should be given equity and fair opportunities, then you’re a feminist. Women, too, are considered a vulnerable, weaker section of the world and hence people associate feminism with women. But feminism is about everyone who deserves a fair chance at life.”
There is no better way to explain feminism than that. Note that every woman in the olden times who fought for feminism wasn’t focused on downgrading or belittling men – they only cared about how to uplift the oppressed aka women.
Today, we have more and more filmmakers appreciating the concept of talking about hush-hush topics to create awareness. But, wouldn’t it be great if they took the original definition of feminism and made a movie about it to open people’s eyes? Sure, people would criticize the movie because it speaks facts, but the number of people who will get educated will be exemplary.
This Independence Week, Filmify is making the effort to bring to you the stories of 2 revolutionaries every day until August 15th, half of it dedicated to female patriots. A total of 12 legends, 6 males and 6 females will be spoken about through the ‘Unsung Heroes Series’ exclusively on Filmify. To read about each one of them, stay tuned for latest updates!