FYI, even Gandhiji said: Modern girls love to be Juliet to half a dozen Romeos

Gandhiji strongly favoured the emancipation of women. He opposed purdah, child marriage, untouchability, the oppression of widows and Sati. He especially recruited women to participate in the salt tax campaigns and the boycott of foreign products. Gandhiji's success in enlisting women in his campaigns gave many women a new self-confidence and dignity in the mainstream of Indian public life.

 

However, Gandhiji was conservative and orthodox in many aspects - including the 'modernity' of women. On the eve of New Year in 1939, Mahatma Gandhiji wrote in his weekly newspaper 'Harijan':

 

"I have a fear that the modern girl loves to be Juliet to half a dozen Romeos. She loves adventure. The modern girl dresses not to protect herself from wind, rain and sun, but to attract attention. She improves upon nature by painting herself and looking extraordinary. The non-violent way is not for such girls".

 

After this post, he received many objections and complaints from modern girls across the country. Particularly, eleven girls from West Bengal wrote a letter collectively and sent it to Sabarmati Ashram.

 

Responding to that letter Gandhiji wrote: "I hold myself incapable of writing anything derogatory to womanhood. My regard for the fair sex is too great to permit me to think ill of them. She is, what she has been described to be in English, the better half of mankind,"

 

While Gandhiji defended his stand firmly via the above response, though even today one can take issue with phrases like 'fair sex' or 'better half'.

 

However, it cannot be denied that in that letter Gandhiji admits his errors and mistakes. In that response, he continued to say that his intention was to reveal the problems of modern girls and not to accuse them of frailty or weakness.

 

The most interesting thing is that he allowed the entire conversation that took place between him and the eleven girls to be published in 'Harijan'.

 

Perfection cannot be brought in one single day. Whether a person is perfect or imperfect or modern or conventional is not important. A healthy discussion and a radical change can only be expected as long as honesty and open mindedness exist, an insight revealed by this incident of Mahatma Gandhiji.