Indira Gandhi: Tribute To The Iron Lady Of India!

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There could possibly be a lot of controversies and enough repercussions of the leadership of Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi, but the undeniable fact is that she was one of her kind.

India’s first and only, till date, female Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi was also the second longest-serving Indian Prime Minister after her father. From January 1966 to March 1977, and from January 1980 to until her assassination in October 1984, she represented Indian National Congress in an iconic way.

On the 36th death anniversary of the first woman Prime Minister of India, Infano is putting together some of the major facts about India’s Iron Woman.

The childhood influence

Gandhi had always been influenced by the Indian Independence Movement. When she was 5 YO, she burned her favourite foreign doll, influenced by the Swadeshi movement, as the doll was made in England. At 12, she was leading children in the Vanar Sena which included 60,000 young revolutionaries who made flags, addressed envelopes, and conveyed messages.

Born on November 19, 1917, Gandhi was the only daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India. She worked as an assistant to her father before joining the cabinet. She was also elected as the president of the Indian National Congress in 1960. Upon sworn in, she nationalised 14 banks during her tenure.

Led the war with Pakistan

Indira Gandhi went to war with the neighbouring country Pakistan and supported East Pakistan which resulted in an Indian victory and the creation of Bangladesh.

Before this historical victory, ministers who used to call her ‘Goongi Gudiya’ started calling her ‘Durga’ to pay her respect.

“I am not a person to be pressured — by anybody or any nation,” Indira Gandhi said in an interview after the war ended. She was also awarded Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour, for India’s historic victory.

Woman of the Millennium

The idea of equal pay for equal work for both men and women was given consideration in the Indian Constitution under the Gandhi administration.

She also conducted the country’s first nuclear test, Pokhran I. The development of nuclear weapons was authorised in 1967.

She was called the Iron Lady of India during her 16-year long tenure. In the year 1999, Gandhi was named ‘Woman of the Millennium’ by the BBC.

Identified by power, not gender

Indira Gandhi, no matter how controversial her life was, had always been a figure to look upon. She broke several patriarchies to live her life the way she wanted.

From going against her family’s wishes to marry the love of her life to taking actions in the parliament for the nation, she never gave up.

“I think all her life she was more man than woman in the conventional sense, and her identity was defined more by her aristocratic lineage and later by power than by gender,” Sagarika Ghose writes in her book describing Gandhi.

The tragic end

Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her own bodyguards, who also happened to be Sikh nationalists, on October 31 1984, due to the aftermath of Operation Blue Star. She was shot at 31 bullets; 30 bullets had hit her, of which 23 had passed through her while 7 remained inside her.

Her death was tragic! But, it would not be wrong to say that she inspired several women in India. She remained as a powerful icon who shattered several societal rules and led the nation by several examples.

This article is a tribute to the first woman prime minister of India. Infano does not support any political party and intends to only write about the women who made a mark/ are making a mark in society.

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As a kid my parents showered me with love. They would even shut anyone up mentioning to them,
“Tumhara gorapan nahi mila hai tumhari beti ko” or “Naak-naksha sahi hai beti ka, but rang thoda saawla hai”. The constant hush-hush comments on my skin-tone did affect me and my Mom knew this. She always told me that such shallow thoughts are just of a few people out there. The world outside is beautiful and I, being really small, believed it.

The next few years of school came as a shocker to me. In a crowd of unknown faces, if we students had to team up as partners – be it even for sharing the same bench, I would almost be the last one to be chosen by someone. It was as if there was almost a prejudice in everyone’s mind about dark-skinned people, almost like they could not relate to me.

God forbid I had an argument with any of my class-mates, it would always come down to saying things that hurt me most – calling me an African or Kaali or Raat-rani. And the sad part is that this was not limited to the young kids. Knowingly or unknowingly, the same reflected in the actions of a few teachers as well. I remember sobbing and telling my teacher that I was called ‘Amasvya ka Chand’ by one of my classmates. The first reaction that I got from her was a chuckle, almost an appreciation for the good analogy. And the saddest part was that she did not even realize how much that hurt me.

Then there was a selection for the annual year drama. Almost every year, when announcing the criteria for selection of the female lead, be it a Romeo and Juliet or Pride and Prejudice, the teacher always asked the fairest, prettiest girls to try out for the part. The dark-skinned ones did not even stand a chance, no matter how well their acting or speaking was. There were countless such instances – be it representing the school for events, being the Head Girl – the preference enjoyed by the fair-skinned counterpart, just marginal in some cases, always did exist.

It took a lot of support from family, some counseling, and a lot of will-power, to have the confidence, that whatever preconceived notions people I meet may have based on my color, I can change it once they get to know me. And today I am an independent, happy person, surrounded by family, friends, and colleagues that swear by me.

But not everyone may have that kind of support, not everyone would share their feelings with someone, not everyone may be that strong. I am lucky – not everyone is. Some may suffer from an inferiority complex that starts from school and stays all through their lifetime. Some may go into a shell, and never want to come out. It’s up to us to start the change to stop discriminating based on skin colour. Every skin colour is beautiful. It’s what inside you, that makes you beautiful, not the colour of your skin.