Breaking the taboo, women hitching up saris play kabaddi for ‘liberation’ Premium

Women in saris playing kabbadi matches are a rare sight, especially in rural Maharashtra. But this is now changing, thanks to a string of recent tournaments organised by the women of Committee of Resource Organisation (CORO) India’s Ekal Mahila Sangathan (Single Women’s Organisation), an NGO that works for the upliftment and rights of marginalised women in Maharashtra.

Forty-year-old Mahananda Vishal Patil from Dhanora village at Beed in Maharashtra had never got the opportunity to play a game after she attained puberty. “When I heard there was a kabaddi tournament in the village, I went to watch it. One of the players didn’t turn up and the organisers were asking if somebody would like to play. At that moment, I knew it was my one chance to relive my childhood memories,” she says.

She hitched up her sari and got into the arena, and her team won the second place in the tournament. Women in saris playing kabbadi matches are a rare sight, especially in rural Maharashtra. But this is now changing, thanks to a string of recent tournaments organised by the women of Committee of Resource Organisation (CORO) India’s Ekal Mahila Sangathan (Single Women’s Organisation), an NGO that works for the upliftment and rights of marginalised women in Maharashtra.

Forty-six-year-old Rukmini Ramesh Nagapure from Beed town, got married at 14 and lost her husband at the age of 32. “Women playing sport, specially a widow, is a taboo in our region. I never thought I would ever play any outdoor game again. It felt liberating to be on the ground, laughing and screaming with joy and excitement! We didn’t realise how much we had bottled up within us for years. I know it is not a big deal for many women in cities but for us, it is a life-time opportunity,” says Rukmini.

So far eleven tournaments have been conducted from April 28 to June 15 in 11 villages of four districts in the State — Osmanabad, Beed, Nanded and Latur. In all, 854 women between the age of 18 and 70 played kabaddi and around 2,000 women gathered to encourage them.

In the Marathwada region, widows, single women, women who are divorced and those abandoned by their families face social ostracisation. Patriarchal norms restrict their mobility and they are expected to be confined to their homes and be caregivers. Widows are not allowed to participate in any festivities as they are considered inauspicious.

Mahananda Chavan, one of the organising committee members of Ekal Mahila Sangathan,explains, “During the last four years we have been holding meetings to discuss these patriarchal norms that restrict a woman’s development. In our gatherings, we made women interact with each other. To break the ice, we made them play games, like musical chairs.”

She adds that the women gradually felt comfortable enough to open up about their feelings and share stories of their childhood when they used to play numerous games such as hopscotch, kho kho and kabaddi. “They stopped playing when they reached puberty and many of them dropped out of school and were married by the age of 14 or 16. Since then we have had several discussions to normalise women playing sports, whether they are married, single or elderly,” says Ms. Chavan.