In India, there is a pretty good chance that you might end up dead in your mother’s womb!
Or if you are privileged enough to survive, there’s a probability that you might not see this world for long!!
India is the only large country in the world where more baby girls die than baby boys. The gender differential in child survival is currently 11 per cent, states UNICEF. Statistics reflect community attitudes with fewer hospital admissions for girls than boys, showing that parents sometimes give less attention to newborn girls. In 2017 alone, 1,50,000 fewer girls were admitted to Special Newborn Care Units (SNCUs) than boys.
Source
While this number might not look relevant to you, let’s not forget that only a mere fraction of the womenfolk are tagged privileged in India. And that’s also mainly because of the financial freedom they have got.
This might not seem relatable, but study suggests that financially independent women are more aware of their rights, lead a better life, and contribute more to the next generation. Financial freedom gives women the ability to control their life and claim their rights.
But what happens to women who are not financially secure?
A woman cannot walk out of an abusive marriage if she is not financially independent. A woman might not be able to contribute to her child’s study because of this reason. From better health to controlled life, insurances, savings, household expenditure, parents’ expenses, to whatnot, the answer is subjective!
Here are the anecdotes that I received from three women who are financially independent. Let’s understand what financial freedom means to them!
Meena Devi
“I grew up in a poor family, was married off early to an alcoholic man. While our ration requirements were taken care of with his daily wages, we couldn’t pay our child’s school fees. When he had to skip school for a whole year, I decided to work. I was not literate, so I started working as a house helper for a few families. Initially, it was hard. My salary was meagre. But I worked every day, did multiple shifts and eventually saved enough to send my son to a good school.
It’s been 15 years since I started working. My son is now a graduate. He also managed to crack the Indian Railways exam. Now he asks me not to work and live a good life. But am I not living a good life? Is working as a maid bad? After all, this very job got us where we are today. And even if I want to, I cannot stop working.
This is what made me what I’m today. I earn my own money, don’t ask anyone for anything. I have also saved some amount for my old age and bad times. I know my son is there for me. But I, too, want to be there for myself.”
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Prerna Shah
“I come from a typical Gujarati family. My parents never stopped me from pursuing anything. However, it was my idea to get married and live as a homemaker. Mine was a love marriage! Now, intercaste marriage was something I had to fight for, but I thought it was worth it ― until we got separated.
It was his extramarital affair that made us apart. While I decided to move out with my 8YO girl, managing her, her school fees, and other necessities was not an easy task. I took up a job at a BPO, but my salary was barely enough to make ends meet.
It was not my qualifications that hindered my career; it was my lack of experience in the outer world. It was my first job, and the growth rate was lower than the acknowledgement I used to get at my in-laws for working throughout the day!
Eventually, I moved to my mother’s place to save some money. She also helped me in managing my daughter’s studies. And it was just another day when I heard her talking to our unmarried neighbour, ‘jab tak financially secure naa ban jao, shaadi mat karna!’
I know how worried she was for me and how much it hurt her to see me slogging off day and night. It was a bad phase; we got over it ― took some time, but I have grown into an independent, fierce woman now. Oh, by the way, I recently booked a flat in South Kolkata!”
[ALSO READ: This Fiery Ahmedabad Auto Driver Defied Disability To Support Her Dreams And Family!]
Namrata Singh
“I come from a very small village in Bihar. My mother had to ‘sort of’ fight for my higher education as most of the girls in our community are married off by the age of 22-23. But she fought hard for me.
While I was doing my graduation from DU, she used to send me very limited money and always used to say ‘beta, bhatak mat jaana!’ Can’t blame her!! I come from a lower-middle-class family and from a small village ― the last thing she needed in her life was to hear from someone saying ki aapki ladki toh bigad rahi hai!
So what did I do? I barely talked with boys outside the college, always kept my circle limited and partying? naah, I anyways didn’t have extra money for that!
But my life truly changed after I joined Deloitte. I was ‘probably’ the first individual (yes, not even any boy had done this) to get a job in such a big MNC from my village. I remember how hard my father tried to stop his tears when I handed him my first salary.
Forget my family, not my relatives ever asked about my marriage since that day. And no, not because I am young anymore, but because they couldn’t find a suitable match for me (yet)! Guess what? My parents have asked me to find myself a groom.
I wonder sometimes, when did they become so open-minded? And then I feel it’s not their mind that was closed; it was their hearts and thoughts. Now that they see me earning a seven-figure salary, managing my own expenses, managing half of my home’s expenditure and investing in so many SIPs and MFs, I think they know that I’m not some frog belonging to the well anymore. I’ve seen the sky now, and I won’t limit myself anymore!”
Is your story similar to any of these amazing women? What does #FinancialFreedom mean to you? Tell us your story, and we would love to tell it to the world!