Nearly a century ago, when the term feminism was not yet part of common parlance, the princely estate of Bhopal, now part of Madhya Pradesh, was run by a line of powerful women. In the absence of male successors, they initiated a matrilineal reign from 1819, which continued till 1926. These rulers, referred to as the Begums of Bhopal, ruled with authority, dignity, and bold reforms — disrupting the patriarchal system that had been laid down centuries before them. Sultan Jahan Begum, the last of the four women nawabs, was a reformist ruler known for her work to advance public health and was a pioneer in the field of education, women's education. She was the first president of the All-India Conference on Education and first chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University and authored She nearly 50 books on cooking, housekeeping, health, women’s rights, and responsibilities. Her progressive policies for women, at a time when they were shackled by the forces of patriarchy, have made her a feminist icon even today. Qudsia Begum in 1819, was the first woman ruler in Bhopal and ushered in a period of peace and inter-faith coexistence between various religious groups. Sikander Begum, the second woman Nawab of Bhopal enacted many reforms in the state, including the creation of a mint, a secretariat, a parliament, and a modern judiciary. Shah Jahan Begum improved the tax revenue system and increased state intake, modernized the military's arms, built a dam and an artificial lake, improved the efficiency of the police force, and undertook the first census after the state.
In recent times, Shah Bano Begum, a mother of five from Indore, is considered a feminist figure in the Indian history as she fought her case in the court to demand alimony from her estranged husband. Shah Bano stood by her claims and eventually won the case which paved the foundation for similar future cases and was an important achievement, amidst the controversies and criticism, for the rights of women in India. Women of Madhya Pradesh, including Muslim women, stand on the strong shoulders of many female icons of the past from the state.
Madhya Pradesh is home today to 47.75 lakh people who identify themselves as Muslims and make up approximately 6.57 percent of the total population of 7.26 crore. Of this population nearly 23 lakh (48 percent) are Muslim women. The distribution however is not even across the state, and several districts have a Muslim population of over 10 percent, namely, Burhanpur, Bhopal, Shajapur, Indore, Dewas, Ujjain, Ratlam, Sehore and Vidisha and others with less than 2 percent population (Jhabua, Mandla, Dindori, Niwari). The 100 Rising Beyond The Ceiling stories are a small sliver from among these 23 lakh women of Madhya Pradesh.
The over 100 million women of women of India, who identify themselves as Muslim, reach across all states and union territories, are from a spectrum of ethnicities and languages, do not look the same or sound the same and contribute to progress and development in a myriad way. However, there is a stereotype narrative surrounding Muslim women of India, particularly around education, marital rights, and freedom. Muslim women are often imagined and portrayed as oppressed victims, docile, powerless, voiceless, and marginalized. It is also commonplace to view Muslim women of India, and globally, as a monolithic category, even though they are highly differentiated and heterogeneous. The stereotypical image of a Muslim woman as uneducated and lacking ambition is neither true nor fair. It obscures the complex realities of life for many millions of Muslim women ― incorrectly attributing their low levels of educational attainment to a lack of desire, as well as to the strictures of Islam, rather than to a broader range of socioeconomic and political roadblocks.
Rising Beyond The Ceiling (RBTC) was founded out of the need to change the stereotypical narrative about Muslim women of India. I believe we ourselves must also work to put forward and build our own narrative. Through sharing the stories of the lived reality of Muslim women’s lives, in all their diversity, RBTC aims to dismantle their negative societal stereotypes. The hundreds of profiles of courage and excellence of Muslim women across India and globally, demonstrate how they have overcome and addressed the hierarchies of gender, class, and location. Through shining a light on the untold stories and celebrating the achievements of Muslim women of India, RBTC proposes to make them more visible and drive a new narrative.
I celebrate all the one hundred women spotlighted in this publication. The RBTC 100 Madhya Pradesh honorees have displayed exemplary resilience and success in various fields. They are shattering stereotypes in uniform in government departments and agencies, change makers in social development, making a difference in medicine and science, achieving excellence in academics, demonstrating leadership in the corporate and business sectors, making an impact as founders and entrepreneurs and in the media, award winning authors, writers and poets, administering quality education, creative contributors to the arts and shining is a range of sports, hockey, cricket, wrestling, shooting, others.
As I review the profiles for Rising Beyond The Ceiling, I read about and talk to inspiring Muslim women of India, looking for what they have in common. The many biases and barriers that have derailed women from exploring their full potential could fill pages. However, the bigger fascination for me is not the women who were stopped, but those who refused to be slowed down. And what does that say about what we all can do going forward. While all women achievers are distinctive and individualistic, I see some common pointers emerging. Most achievers have a supportive person or mentor at some point in their lives, whom they mention in different ways – father, mother, spouse, mostly family – who was instrumental in their career selection and/or pursuance. Many women pursued a childhood dream which carried them through failure and disappointment to keep trying and finally succeed. There are stories of taking on professional careers later in life after marriage and motherhood, after exploring different professions. Several faced brickbats and backlash but were firm in their belief which helped them continue in their chosen path. RBTC honorees tend to redefine themselves as individuals without limitations of gender stereotypes, and this belief was also encouraged and supported in their families. The whole world doesn’t need to be on the side of Muslim women, and it almost never is. But one mentor, or teacher or parent or spouse offering encouragement is vital. I continue to learn about and from Muslim women of India. They diversify my perspectives and reiterate that Muslim women are heterogeneous, and not a monolith.
As we take charge of the new narrative, inspired by these stories of success, and recognizing the tenacity of women, let us start shedding the narrow definitions of success and of us, Muslim women of and from India. Change occurs slowly, but it does occur. I feel we are making progress….
Dr. Farah K. Usmani Chairperson & Founder of Rising Beyond The Ceiling New York
