When it comes to being a girl in India, this teen-athlete plays by her own rules
Rani, 17, is breaking down stereotypes and empowering her peers in her home of Varanasi.
When Rani’s not in class, she’s out roller skating, practising for the next level of karate belt or hitting sixers with her cricket bat. The 17-year-old may be busy, but that doesn’t stop her from taking on another challenge — breaking down barriers to education for girls and fighting for equality.
Rani makes the most of every opportunity she’s given — whether she’s in the classroom or out on the field playing a sport. But most girls her age in India are not as lucky. Estimates show that only one out of 100 girls enrolled in school make it through grade 12. And according to UNICEF, 47% of all girls are married before the legal age of 18.
Through the Girl Icon Fellowship, Rani mentors younger girls in her school and teaches them to speak out against traditions that hold girls back. The fellowship recognises and supports 100 Girl Icons like Rani, who defy convention in some of the most restrictive communities in India.
Under the Hindu system of social hierarchy, Rani belongs to the Dhobi (washermen) caste. Her family and most of her neighbourhood are relegated to washing clothes for a living. The prominence of this culture is especially apparent in Varanasi where Rani lives, a religious hub and spiritual capital of India.
Malala Fund spoke with Rani about what life is like for her and other girls in their community.
Malala Fund (MF): Tell us a little about yourself. What does an average day look like for you?
Rani (R): My name is Rani and Rani means queen.
First, I wake up in the morning. If I have to go to school, I wake up at 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. Otherwise, I wake up at 7 a.m. or 8 a.m. If I’m not going to school, I have fun with my sister and sister-in-law and study a little bit too. On school days, I come back, change, eat and study. If not too sleepy, I’ll spend time singing, dancing and playing Ludo (a board game) with my sister and sister-in-law.
I go to computer class in the evening then come back and tutor [girls]. On days I don’t have school, I also go to skating class. But because I’m in grade twelve now, I’ve stopped going as much. My mother says this year determines my future. She says to keep my mind focused on studying.
MF: What are some things we would find in your room?
R: All my awards. There are my medals and certificates too. Books and notebooks. We all sleep there too. I do my homework where I sleep, live and eat.
MF: What’s your favourite thing in the room?
R: I have never thought about it until now. The books. I study from them. And some novels too.
MF: What is your family like?
R: We are four brothers and four sisters. My oldest sister was married before I was born. She has two daughters now.
When my other sister was young, she would do all house chores and study too. She also was the top of her class. My mother compares me to her sometimes. She got a scholarship of 20,000 rupees for college. The news spread around town and because of that scholarship, my brother-in-law asked her hand in marriage. She and my mother really wanted her to study further. She was the first girl in my town to pass grade 12.
But when the marriage proposal came, everyone rushed to get her married. Her in-laws were in a hurry for a bride who would help out with house chores. I’m not sure they needed a daughter-in-law or a maid.
After the wedding, her in-laws said she couldn’t study and take care of family. They asked her what she will gain from studying when she’s going to end up doing house chores anyways.
When she had won that scholarship, it encouraged many more girls in our town to go to school and also parents to realise that girls should be educated.
MF: Why has your mother been so supportive of you and your sisters going to school?
R: My mother is not literate but she wants her children to study and succeed. She might not read but she knows that only education can take us away from being poor.
We tease her that if grandpa had sent you to school, you would be an engineer for sure. She’s really good at calculations.
MF: Is getting an education important to you?
R: I want to achieve what my sisters and parents weren’t able to. With education, I can solve my problems.
MF: Has your family faced challenges in sending you to school?
R: They can’t afford it but my mother adjusts somehow. She says first we will pay for your school fees then we will manage the rest.
MF: Do you think they believe education is as important as you do?
R: Yes, everyone wants me to go to school and stand on my own feet. They want me to do something so great that they can be known as Rani’s mother, brother, sister.
But I do think I lack guidance sometimes. I wish I had someone in my family who could help me with homework or give me new ideas. But everyone is so busy with work and they don’t really understand my questions.
MF: What is your favourite part about going to school?
R: The fun! Studying happens too but meeting friends and catching up with them is fun. And we share problems we’re having with classes and homework. If I’m ever sad, talking to friends makes me happy and freshens up my mood.
I don’t ever skip school. Even if I’m sick, I’ll make it somehow.
MF: Tell us more about what life is like for girls in your neighbourhood.
R: People in my neighbourhood don’t really let their daughters study. They make them do household work.
MF: You have both brothers and sisters. Growing up, did you feel like you were treated differently than your brothers?
R: I do feel that my mother gave my brothers more freedom. They can stay out late and go to their friends’ houses. But for me if it is 8 p.m. and I’m at any friends place, I will get ten calls. And that’s after informing her where I am. If I wouldn’t inform her, it would be like an earthquake struck.
Then on the other hand, I think mothers are scared. You hear in newspapers and channels that something bad has happened to girls somewhere all the time. So mothers are worried thinking my daughter is out, something bad might happen to her. But I think they have to have some faith.
MF: You’re involved in so many things — sports, music, tutoring. What’s one thing you want people to remember about you?
R: I want to be known as the perfect daughter. People often think that boys are the ones who support their family but I want to show otherwise. Girls can be support systems too.
MF: Since becoming a Girl Icon, have you seen any transformations in your community?
R: Yes, when I go [to trainings] and come back, go to play sports or even just study in my room, the six girls I teach think we have to do things like Rani Didi (sister). Other girls in my school also think “I could become like her.”
I mentor girls hoping that they will go further than me. I want them to ask “what problems am I facing?” and then think “Can I change that?”
Thank you to Milaan Foundation and their Girl Icon Fellowship for facilitating our conversation with Rani. Started in 2015, the fellowship is an initiative that recognises outstanding change-makers who seek to make a difference in their communities in India.
Like Malala Fund, the Girl Icon fellowship “nurtures, invests in and amplifies voices of change.”
Check out more on Rani:
