An approximately 45-minute drive from the airport would take you to the Vardhman College of Engineering, on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Vardhman provides technical education to over 5000 students and boasted of the highest Gender ratio of 60:40 among all the colleges/universities that we have traveled to so far. In fact, we were apprised that some of the courses like that of computer science attracted a 50:50 ratio. In Kerala, earlier, we had noticed a higher ratio of girls in specific courses like Civil Engineering. In our conversation with the Principal Dr. JVR Ravindra and the HOD of electrical engineering Dr. Asif, while discussing gender parity in engineering courses, they shared their observations on Kerala, where a lot of the girls were absorbed by the Gulf Construction companies. Considered a valuable asset as the girls made very diligent and sincere workers in comparison to their male counterparts.

We reached a day before the session scheduled for 18th November and in quick succession of the session in Bangalore, Karnataka on 15th earlier in the week. Our first trip to Hyderabad beckoned us to visit at least some of its iconic sites. Of all the places we chose the Salar Jung, museum. Hiring a guide we walked down the dusty (quite literally) shelves of world history as recreated by the personal collection of artifacts of Nawab Mir Yousuf Ali Khan or popularly known as Salar Jung III.

The next day we reached a jam-packed hall to conduct the session with students of all genders in rapt attention. A 60-minute interactive workshop embellished with extensive research data, and videos are wrapped with the steps to be taken that have been documented with IPS Chhaya Sharma, in case of sexual violence. A customary selfie post the workshops is a testimony to our interaction and the impact it makes on the fertile minds of the youth despite the intense session. As an immediately actionable suggestion, we also encourage the institutes to invest in counselors not just as a cursory requirement but to measure and monitor the well-being of the students all through their course. At Gitam university in Andhra Pradesh, the students have access to online counseling all year round through Yourdost. We were told that the university has taken the subscription on behalf of the students and counselors are in touch with the faculty in case an intervention is required.

We flew back to Delhi the same evening, though not before some shopping at the Karachi Bakery (The tutti Frutti biscuits are worth the hype). Vanshika continues to coordinate and streamline all logistics involved including identifying and scheduling the sessions with the different state universities. She is inspiring in her own right, besides interning with JOSH TALKS she also tops her class at Delhi University where she pursues her Master’s Degree in Sociology.

We still had another session to go before the year ended. Only we didn’t realize it would be on the 10th year since Nirbhaya on 16th December. Now that’s a story for the next blog!

If you would like to have us conduct this 90-minute session in your college or company just drop us a mail with the details of the institution and the preferred dates at suparnaa@simplysuparnaa.com.

Links for further study

To read about the Kerala Chapter click here>>

To read about the Karnataka Chapter click here>>

To read about the Vizag Chapter click here>>

To read about the Chennai, Chapter click here>>

To read about the Prayagraj Chapter click here>>

To read about Assam Chapter click here>>

To read about Kolkatta Chapter click here>>

To read about the Kanpur Chapter click here>>

To read about the Purnea Bihar Chapter click here>>

To read about the Pune experience click here>>

To know more about the online session experience read here >>

PS: if you stand for what is right – team SABERA (Annual Awards and Summit by the  Simply Suparnaa © Media Network) you must watch the annual event recognizing the GOOD work across India.

The post Stand up for what’s Right I Hyderabad Chapter appeared first on Woman Endangered.

The beauty of these sessions is that it gives us a chance to absorb the sights, sounds and most importantly the cultural references unique to the region. So was the case here where a day prior we experienced the vibrant religious fervour at the Sangam or the point where the rivers, Yamuna and Ganga meet. Legend has it that a third river Saraswati also met at this point forming the holy trinity. We were waiting to witness the Arti of the river Ganges and were fortunate to be called upon to offer our obeisance with the oil-lit lamps amidst the age-old Sanskrit chants.

My gratitude for the opportunity to both JOSH TALKS and TVS Radar, for conducting these sessions. Vanshika (Interning with JOSH TALKS ) continues to manage and coordinate with the colleges ensuring all goes smoothly. She also adds the much-needed perspective of a student herself which further connects with the audience we are addressing.

The united group of institutes is an hour and a half from the main city. And since this time we were taking the train back (Bande Matram Express is the fastest train in India replete with large windows and some delectable knick-knacks) the agent booked us a hotel that was quite literally at the station. The whole night was spent listening to the arrival and departure of the trains with the automated nasal announcements.

The session the next day, more than made up for the uncomfortable night before.

We arrived early and spent a good couple of hours with the faculty before the actual session. Most were from the Human Value (a course introduced in engineering colleges in 2018) or soft skills & communication department. They shared stories of how dowry demands and domestic violence are commonplace across the belt. Stories that are actively played out in the neighbourhood or with friends and family.

The session at the UGI campus was special in more ways than one. 400 Students from the foundation course to fourth year BTech were in rapt attention through the Workshop that continued beyond the designated time to over 2.5 hours. Personal stories and anecdotes were shared and it was an emotionally charged interaction for all involved.

The fact is that after each session that we have conducted so far, the students feel comfortable enough to share their intimate experiences or unresolved queries. This time too at UGI a young girl took to the mike and shared an unfortunate incident that she had to encounter. While the B Tech students and their faculty audience seemed taken aback by the narration but this stands as a testimony both to the importance of sessions like these and the safe space that we manage to create within a short span of time. Sharing a personal unfortunate saga amidst peers who had no clue indeed takes courage.

We had a comfortable journey back on the Bande Matram Express and got the weekend to recoup as Monday we were back on the road to conduct the next session in the tribal belt of Assam, Boko.

To read about Assam Chapter click here>>

If you would like to have us conduct this 90-minute session in your college or company just drop us a mail with the details of the institution and the prefered dates at suparnaa@simplysuparnaa.com.

Links for further study

To read about the Kanpur Chapter click here>>

To read about the Purnea, Bihar Chapter click here>>

To read about the Pune experience click here>>

To know more about the online session experience read here >>

PS: if you stand for what is right – team SABERA (Annual Awards and Summit by the  Simply Suparnaa © Media Network) jury is looking for you Register here>>

The post Standup for what’s Right I Prayagraj Chapter appeared first on Woman Endangered.

I had the chance to hear some of the survivor stories in person that were interwoven through the cultural program organised at the BC Pal Auditorium in Chitranjan Park by NGO Shakti Shalini on the evening of the 27th, recently. The survivors are mostly between their early twenties or thirties. Some shared their saga through a creative storytelling format or dance drama (with the help of the pandies’ theatre group ), others through their poem or artwork. It was an emotionally charged event both for the performers as well as the audience. The underlying common thread was a breach of individual dignity which played itself out either through an extreme act of violence or a continuous abuse in relationships.

THE FOUNDING STORY
In the 1980s, Satyarani Chadha and Shahjahan Begum, two women found their daughters subjected to death by burning by their respective in-laws on the pretext of insufficient dowry. The violent loss of their daughters galvanized them to tell their story to everyone: the media, the courtroom, and the public. They committed to joining, hands and dedicating their lives to fighting gender/ sexual violence, especially domestic and dowry violence. In 1987 they established Shakti Shalini and it became a pioneer of grassroots gender equality work in India.

In 1975, the United Nations General Assembly adopted 1975-1985 as the decade for women. The global context of a feminist wave across the 1970s and 80s channelised international support and commendation toward the organisation. This was the context in which Shakti Shalini was born.

Through its early years, Shakti Shalini played a pioneering role in campaigning for anti-dowry and domestic violence laws currently prevailing on the land and it established the first shelter home for women in distress in Delhi. Through its journey full of challenges and breakthroughs alike, Shakti Shalini has strived to support countless individuals in navigating violence and discrimination toward a life of safety, freedom, and dignity.

Shakti Shalini’s Helpline numbers for Gender/Sexual violence survivors are as follows

011-24373737

Whatsapp or call 7838957810

Whatsapp or call 9654462722

Post Script

We are on a mission to Stand up for what is Right. Travelling across conducting the session on Combating Violence against Women with the youth of the country. The sessions are being facilitated by TVS Radar as their marketing outreach and are being organised by JOSH TALKS with Suparnaa Chadda as the speaker conducting these sessions.

To read about the Kolkatta Chapter click here>>

To read about the Kanpur Chapter click here>>

To read about the Purnea, Bihar Chapter click here>>

To read about the Pune experience click here>>

To know more about the online session experience read here >>

PS: if you work in the focus area of gender equity – team SABERA (Annual Awards and Summit by the  Simply Suparnaa © Media Network) jury is looking for you Register here and submit criteria based information under the Initiative Category A6: लैंगिक समानता (Gender Diversity & Inclusion) 

The post Shakti Shalini Supporting Gender Violence survivors for 35 years appeared first on Woman Endangered.

The session was scheduled for the 4th of August Thursday, and we reached Kolkata airport on the 3rd evening. Being a Shakti devout, it was an opportune chance to offer obeisance to the energy that keeps me going to conduct these sessions despite all odds. Kali ghat, the cab driver assured is open till 10:30 pm. While the hotel staff shared that it shuts at 8 pm. It was 7:30 pm and I decided to take my chances and dash for her Darshan after a quick shower. How I reached and was guided is another story of faith altogether. The gates were supposed to shut by 9 pm and even though the distance was a good 2 hours from the hotel, I did manage to offer my prayers before the session scheduled for the next day.

Dream Institute of Technology is a 16-year-old dream of the Sarkar Family in West Bengal. They take pride in utilising their own resources for running the college, including the 10-acre expanse of land on which the college is established. Nestled in the by lanes of BH Road Kolkatta which is away from the main city by a couple of hours, it boasts 100 per cent placement for students offering B tech and M Tech courses. The only obvious drawback was the lack of women’s strength in the college at just about 15 odd per cent.

Vanshika continues to accompany me through these sessions and proactively coordinates and organises with the college on behalf of JOSH TALKS, such that the sessions go smoothly. Though we were supposed to start at 1:00 pm due to the distance and traffic we managed to reach by about 1:40 pm and started around 2:00 pm. It was the students’ annual sports day and despite the competitive sports excitement and delay, they sat through the whole session and proactively engaged in conversations sharing their individual persectives.

These sessions are a part of the marketing initiative of TVS Radar that JOSH TALKS is helping conduct through the help of their network with educational institutes across states that are the target segment for TVS.

If you would like to have us conduct this 90-minute session in your college or company just drop us a mail with the details of the institution and the prefered dates at suparnaa@simplysuparnaa.com.

Links for further study

To read about the Kanpur Chapter click here>>

To read about the Purnea, Bihar Chapter click here>>

To read about the Pune experience click here>>

To know more about the online session experience read here >>

PS: if you stand for what is right – team SABERA (Annual Awards and Summit by the  Simply Suparnaa © Media Network) jury is looking for you Register here>>

To support our initiative contribute here.

The post Combating Gender-based violence – Kolkata Chapter appeared first on Woman Endangered.

After conducting the session Online in Kolkatta and Kanpur, we had the opportunity to conduct the session in person first in Pune and now in Bihar. This is part of the JOSH TALK series ‘Stand up for what is Right’ that I am helping conduct with engineering students across the nation. Travelling to Bihar and despite all odds it has indeed been fulfilling in more ways than one. The fact that I had this young coy engineering student, Shamima Yasmin, come Up post the 1.5-hour workshop in a humidity packed room of over 250 students and touch our feet for the learnings shared – is one of the most humbling reasons. This is what India is all about. A beautiful country with a shared culture and ancient wisdom prevailing beyond all other differences.

Vanshika, a bright student interning with JOSH TALKS travelled with me on both occasions and her enthusiasm for the topic of violence against women as well as her effervescent temperament is infectious. We got to know each other a little better over the shared meals, road and air travel as well as the 5-hour delay in the airport on our way back! Apparently spice jet had a cyberattack on the day we had to fly back!

And yet despite the electricity outages, low net connectivity, heat, humidity and delays it was a fulfilling experience to have interacted with the 250 students of Purnea Engineering college and I am grateful to the universe for the opportunity.

Links for further study

To read about the Pune experience click here>>

To know more about the online session experience read here >>

PS: if you stand for what is right – team SABERA is looking for you Register here>>

To support our initiative contribute here.

The post Stand up for what’s Right I Bihar chapter appeared first on Woman Endangered.