The Women’s Solidarity Festival

India is a land of many festivals, each celebrating our rich cultural tradition, each representing a certain important date in the history of one or the other religion. These timings often correspond to events in the natural cycles of land and water, such as the coming of rain or the harvest season.

The Women’s Solidarity Festival at AVAG stands out in some ways from these traditional festivals. For one, the date of the festivities is flexible and this year there were four pre-events leading up to the Finale. The theme of the festival is simply the Spirit of Woman. It overcomes every cultural, caste, class, race, colour and even gender divide since men, too, are welcome to celebrate the Spirit of Woman. There is no religion-based tradition or fear of upsetting a God that drives the festivities. The women come voluntarily, in large numbers, and each one of them contributes financially to the festival. It is this participation that makes the event extremely special.

The aim of the festival is not to educate, raise awareness, honour a dead person or even promote any kind of product or idea. The festival exists because of and entirely for the women.

And so the question arises, why do the women of the bioregion, coming from a rural background that puts them not just at an economic disadvantage but also subject to a severely prevalent gender bias at every level of society, contribute a portion of their savings to host a Women’s Festival for themselves?

To find the answer to this question we must dig a little deeper to know the lives of these women.

It is important to understand the value of the Udhayam Women’s Federation, Auroville Village Action Group and most importantly, the value of the network these bodies represent in their lives. The Federation is a sisterhood of which every member is proud to be a part. Auroville Village Action Group gives a safe space for them to express, learn, share and grow as a strong community.

It is a family, and the Women’s Solidarity Festival is a family function. This is a sentiment echoed by several women on the morning of the festival as they stood at the entrance of the campus, clad in their brightest, happiest sarees to welcome the women’s groups. They were full of excitement and pure joy even though many had stayed awake through most of the previous night at the AVAG office to complete the preparations for the event. If their bodies were tired, their soaring spirits were hiding it well.

It had been a long night. All the AVAG staff, including the directors Anbu and Moris, had stayed till the wee hours of the morning, personally supervising the cooking and food packaging. Several Federation members too had volunteered for this work. They were assisted by some Men’s Clubs and Paalam members (an AVAG initiative to bridge the gap between the youth in the bioregion and the resources available in Auroville).

And then there were the cooking teams who had been diligently working over four days to prepare snacks for all the 5,000 expected women and on the last night were cooking tamarind rice for lunch. The cooking was done in vessels large enough for some of the smaller women to curl up in. The food packaging and distribution system too had been designed in detail. Each development worker was in-charge of distributing to the groups from villages under his/her care.

In addition to this the entrance to the campus had been decorated with a kolam and stalls arranged for the social enterprises of AVAG.

Through the week we had thunderstorms every night and the water from the flooded ground had to be pumped out and then the swamps filled with dry sand for the event. Fortunately, the day of the festival was clear and sunny.

When Anbu Akka apologised to them for how uncomfortably warm the weather was, the women said that the heat did not bother them because they had been praying for it to not rain on this day lest their festival be cancelled.

We stood with Anbu at the entrance to greet the women as they arrived in groups. The first groups entered dancing to the sound of drumbeats and were accompanied by the AVAG staff to the ground. Each group carried a placard with the name of their group and different drawings and designs. Many groups came in uniform sarees, adding to the visual of unity and solidarity.

The programme was inaugurated by the Federation members who collectively took a pledge to work for not just their own development but for other women too. They declare that they are an instrument for change and will not discriminate on the basis of caste, class or creed. They also vow to not deliberately end their lives, no matter how distressed their situation may be. The resolution is a powerful message to and from the women that signifies the bond they share.

We were then addressed by some senior Aurovilians and Mr. Chunkath, the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation.

All the speakers shared their dream of an inclusive future that would be peaceful and beneficial for all. They marveled at the energy of the women, radiating from their very presence and congratulated them on the social oppression they had overcome to be here.

And so began the cultural performances. The women had been preparing for these for over a month with regular practices and training. AVAG had organised dance, theatre and debating professionals to train women in ancient traditional folk dance forms of Tamil Nadu which are on the brink of being lost. The skits were made on themes of social change, shedding light on issues of gender bias, treatment of the elderly, eve-teasing and deforestation. The songs called for a shift in social mentality and emphasised the role women can play in this shift.

AVAG used this opportunity to introduce to the women the work of other social welfare organisations in the bioregion. We heard from Dr. Vidya Ramkumar who works in the field of Child Welfare about sensitive issues like child sexual abuse, especially within homes and extended family, how to identify it, teach their children to recognise it and how to get help.

Ms. Sheethal Nayak presented the case of the transgender community and boldly spoke of the discrimination these people face in society. She urged the crowd to consider the Gods they worship who have been depicted as transgender and appealed to their sense of empathy, calling for social justice and equality. Even though this topic is commonly considered taboo, and there prevail several biases against people of transgender, the women were not only receptive to Ms. Nayak but also sent her good wishes as she exited the stage.

Several audience members spontaneously stood up and joined in dance, unafraid and unashamed of their spirited expression. They held each other’s hands and spun in circles, their bodies moving to an ancient beat of folk music, their collective spirit connecting in a wave of female strength.

Ain Contractor

Ain is an architect from Mumbai and currently volunteers with AVAG. She has an interest in socially and environmentally-conscious design and has a firm faith in the values of equality, compassion and human unity.