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The front runner of Women’s eera Desai was born in 1925 to a Report of 1988 and the National Per
Studies in India and the creator middle class Gujarati family that spective Plan for Women, 1988-2000. She
ardently supported the freedom co-authored a book, Women and Society
of a model women’s studies
movement. As a schoolgirl, along with in India (1988) with Maithreyi Krishnaraj
centre that combined the ethos Mandakini (later on Kunnikal Narayan) that helped institutionalise women’s
of women’s studies and women’s and Usha Mehta (who started an under studies in academia by providing a bench
movement at the SNDT University, ground radio for the freedom movement mark for curriculum development and
called, “Vioce of India”) she actively textbook writing for teaching women’s
Mumbai, Neera Desai passed
worked for the Monkey Brigade formed studies courses in sociology, economics,
away on 25 June. by Mahatma Gandhi. Later on, as a college political science, languages and founda
student at the time of the Quit India tion course. She collaborated with Usha
movement in 1942, Neeraben, as she Thakkar to bring out another popular
came to be known, was arrested several book Women in Indian Society published
times. She completed her postgraduation by the National Book Trust, India,
studies immediately after India gained New Delhi on the occasion of Women’s
independence (she had turned to Socialist Empowerment Year, 2001.
ideas by then) and her doctoral thesis in During the 1990s, she took up the task
Sociology touched economic, anthro of preparing the profiles of 100 feminists
pological and historical dimensions of from western India by using the qualita
women’s role in India. This inter tive method of research. It took her 17
disciplinary work was published in a book years to complete this stupendous work
called Woman in Modern India in 1952. It and as a result, a solid volume emerged in
was welcomed by critics as a seminal con the form of Feminism as Experience:
tribution that provided historical under Thoughts and Narratives which was pub
standing on the status of Indian women lished by Sound and Picture Archives for
from the Vedic period to the early years of Research On Women (SPARROW) in 2007.
independent India. Kamaladevi Chatto Her research and writings in English and
padhaya in the foreword to this book, Gujarati reflect a deep concern for issues
labelled her analysis as “feminist”. What related to gender and power, and an ef
she observed in the early 1950s was vali fort to understand the social construc
dated by the women’s rights movement in tions of feminist ideology. She collabo
the 1970s onwards. She was much ahead rated with young scholars to produce
of her time. training manuals for poor rural women
Desai joined the SNDT Women’s Univer and women’s studies series in Gujarati.
sity in the late 1950s and served on sever She was a friend, philosopher and guide
al decision-making bodies as professor for Veena Poonacha (director, Research
and head of the postgraduate department Centre for Women’s Studies) and Divya
of sociology, as founder director of the Pande of SPARROW who are currently
Post Graduate Studies and Research making important contributions to
Centre for Women’s Studies and the Centre women’s studies. Neeraben always
for Rural Development till she retired in admired the commitment of C S Lakshmi
1984. She also offered her valuable (director, SPARROW) to feminism and her
services several times as officiating vice writings in Tamil.
chancellor during 1970-84. At SNDT, she
will always be remembered as a very Solidarity with Social Movements
Vibhuti Patel (vibhuti.np@gmail.com) has been warm, kind and empathetic individual, Neera Desai always looked upon herself
a women’s rights activist for over three decades who was humble even when she was at as a fellow traveller of all progres-
and is with the SNDT University, Mumbai.
the peak of her career. sive, secular, democratic and people’s
Economic & Political Weekly EPW july 11, 2009 vol xliv no 28 11
commentary
movements. She always walked the talk welcome, gracious smiles, food and moral among academicians, researchers, teachers,
and lent her support for campaigns to support from her. students, administrators, policymakers
release political prisoners and to oppose and political activists for women’s causes.
draconian laws that repressed the demo Institution Builder Everyone was touched by her simplicity,
cratic rights. She supported the Narmada The Research Unit on Women’s Studies hard work and spirit of voluntarism. Those
Bachao Andolan, the Kashtakari Sangath (that she set up in 1974) became the model who had the opportunity to work with her
ana and women’s rights groups in Mum and inspiration for other such centres and closely found that she was a source of im
bai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Vadodara, Valsad, the University Grants Commission consid mense knowledge, warmth, understand
and Ahmedabad. She loved the songs of ered it a model to be emulated. In 1990, ing, depth, guidance and dependability.
the revolutionary poet-singer Gaddar and she supported the efforts to establish She bonded very well with Veena Mazum
never missed an opportunity to attend a SPARROW and was one of the mainstays of dar, Kumud Sharma and Latika Sarkar
public meeting where he would be singing the India Centre for Human Rights and from CWDS.
whether in Surat or in Mumbai. In Law in Mumbai, and the Centre for Mary John, director of the CWDS says,
academic meetings or conferences if any Women’s Development Studies (CWDS, Isn’t it interesting that she is one of the very
one tried to trivialise any of the concerns Delhi). She was closely associated with few women of her generation who openly
of any people’s movement, an otherwise feminist groups such as Vacha (Mumbai), called herself a feminist (way back in 1952)
and also made it the theme of her reflections
polite Neeraben would stand up and make Astitva (Valsad) and Sahiyar (Vadodara). – there is an early article in the Indian Jour-
a sharp rebuttal. One never heard her During the 1990s, she was on the advisory nal of Gender Studies and her book of inter
grumble about facilities or ask for com board of the Centre for Enquiry into views that came out very recently.
forts when she attended workshops of Health and Allied Themes (Mumbai) in its Neeraben occupied a unique position in
women’s rights groups held in spartan formative years. institutional and individual memory be
surroundings and on shoestring budgets. Desai was one of the founding members cause she did not only build institutions;
Wherever she was, she would attend of the Indian Association for Women’s she also built feminists and women’s
8 March (International Women’s Day) Studies, the Gujarat Association of studies scholars.
rallies held by the united front of women’s Women’s Studies and the Maharashtra
organisations without fail. Association of Women’s Studies. In 1981, ‘The Personal Is Political’
Activists from the movements for rights under her leadership, the first national In Vadodara, I used to attend a study
of women, tribals, dalits, and the working conference on women’s studies was orga circle conducted by A R Desai on Marxism
class could always look forward to a warm nised that set the tone by networing in the early 1970s, during the Diwali and
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12 july 11, 2009 vol xliv no 28 EPW Economic & Political Weekly
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summer vacations and was introduced to alternate country report: Response from young scholars along, teaching them and
his wife, Neera in 1972. We invited her to Women’s Movement for the End of the helping them build the courage and resolve
to commit themselves to this field – and
our students’ organisation Study and Decade Conference in Nairobi, 1985, the
she succeeded through the art of persua
Struggle Alliance. She spoke to us about Indian Women: Change and Challenge, sion which was her greatest strength. But
the Committee on the Status of Women in status report for the Indian Council of of course she had already long long before
India of which she was one of the mem Social Science Research, Critical Evalua- walked that path, virtually alone, convinced
bers. When Towards Equality Report came tion of Women’s Studies Researches in the that women’s studies had a political role to
fulfil in the post-independence academic
out in 1974, she conducted the study cir Post Independence Period (1988), the
scene in India. The two of them – Prof A R
cle on the findings of the report. Till then Gujarati version of the Shramshakti Re- and Neeraben were together and indivi
the younger generation of women’s activ port (1989) the publication of the feminist dually visionaries of women’s liberation in
ists had read the writings of only western quarterly in Gujarati (1988-2002) and independent India.
feminists such as Eveleen Reed, Mary case studies for Feminism in Western India
Alice Waters, Kate Millet, Betty Friedan sponsored by the CWDS (Delhi). Last Days
and Simon de’ Bouvoir. She was happy On 3 April 2008, Neeraben along with
that I had translated several essays of Neeraben as Mentor five outstanding women who have con
Reed’s book Problems of Women’s Libera- She taught the younger generation of In tributed immensely to Women’s Studies
tion into Gujarati. dian feminists to get out of abstractions in India was felicitated by the Centre for
When life became difficult for me in and generalisations and to examine our Women’s Studies, Tata Institute of Social
Vadodara due to my marriage with my own reality and evolve the intellectual Sciences. The centre had also prepared
comrade who happened to be a Muslim tools rooted in our society. She also con panels on each of them, capturing rare
R Desai suggested that I should move to vinced many women activists like Anu pictures profiling the women’s contr
Mumbai. I boarded the train to Mumbai radha Shanbag, Flavia, Lata P M, Kalpana ibution and milestones in their lives. She
with him and came to his house. Both Kannabiran, Sonal Shukla, Trupti Shah, had health problems and looked pale
Neeraben and their son Mihir welcomed Shiraz Balsara and me that for an effec but, as always, she spoke with stoic con
me, introduced me to Mumbai, guided me, tive women’s movement, we needed viction on theoretical issues, research
drew maps to negotiate the different strong analytical skills and must orient methodologies and epistemological chal
suburbs of Mumbai and explained the our energies towards women’s studies. To lenges faced by women’s studies in the
intricacies of the suburban railway construct knowledge on women with 21st century.
system. I stayed with them for a week and women’s sensitivities, sensibilities and The last six months were painful for her
emerged as a well-informed Mumbaikar. women’s prism, we needed five arms – due to the cancer spreading all over her
Neeraben’s house was my second home in panch mahabhootas – teaching, training, body. But whenever we visited her she
times of ill-health, ups and downs in life documentation, research and action. never discussed her discomfort, showing
and for emotional support. The intel Young women activists and researchers us instead her translations of feminist
lectually and politically charged environ named her the “mother of women’s stud writings from different parts of India into
ment, the family’s interest in music, art, ies” as she was always available to four Gujarati, discussing novels-films-poems-
poetry, songs, vegetarian cuisine, and generations of women with her wisdom, and music. She would converse on a wide-
tolerance towards ideological differences intellect, information, advice and vast ex range of issues from identity politics to the
served as a tonic for a young political perience. What we liked was the relation film Parzania made by her nephew, Rahul
activist like me. ship of mutual respect; she never Dholakia. She shared a beautiful intel
It was in 1979, when I went to see her preached. With her there was a rapport lectual and emotional relationship with
with Madhu Kishwar, armed with the first based on equality. her son, Mihir Desai, a human rights
issue of Manushi, she confronted us sharply. The bonding with her enjoyed by the activist lawyer and his feminist compan
In the reading list published therein, we younger generation of feminists is ex ion, Sandhya Gokhale.
had mentioned Altekar, M N Srinivas and pressed aptly by Kalpana Kannabiran, A fitting tribute to Neera Desai, who
all those who had published books on In Neeraben’s passing away we in the wom was among those nominated for the “1000
women but her book Women in Modern en’s movement and in women’s studies have Women for the Nobel Peace Prize”, would
India was not mentioned due to our igno lost a mentor, a generous and caring teacher be to take women’s studies to newer
and a friend and confidante who shared her
rance about it. We had an animated debate heights in terms of its epistemological
time and ideas willingly, and offered un
on “Women’s Question” and “Trends in stinting support – personal, professional and growth and construction of a new body of
Feminism”. She gave us a copy of her book. political to entire generations of activist- knowledge for strengthening transforma
After reading it, my relationship with her scholars. Several of us, especially those of us tory processes for better quality of life not
took an 180 degree turn. From a sympa who began our journey in women’s studies only for women but for all humanity. She
in India in the very early 1980s benefited
thiser of the left movement, she became a always said that the women’s liberation
enormously from her presence, her gener
fellow feminist. osity and her guidance over two decades. cannot come about without liberation of
Our most productive years were during At a time when women’s studies was strug humankind and vice versa. Neeraben, we
the 1980s. We worked together for an gling for recognition, she gently prodded will always celebrate your spirit!
Economic & Political Weekly EPW july 11, 2009 vol xliv no 28 13
commentary
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14 july 11, 2009 vol xliv no 28 EPW Economic & Political Weekly