making South Asian women visible
“I am the FIRST POST GRADUATE in my family I am from a very middle class family with my sister and two elder brothers. Three of them could not clear their XI std, but I am the one who completed my XIth std during 1976-77 in a small village called Thiruthuraipundi, Thanjavur Dist, now Thiruvarur... Continue Reading →
"I wish to state that I am the 1st graduate of our family in the year of 1972. My father studied up to intermediate in Presidency college of Madras. He served and retired as Commercial tax officer. I belong to 1st set of Pre University in DevkunwarNanalal Bhat Vaishnava College Chrompet. I belong to 1st... Continue Reading →
"Mrs S Rangamony, now 92, was the first woman graduate, in fact post graduate, in her family. Her father, S V Sundarraja Iyengar, was a well-known advocate in Tirunelveli and was an AICC member working alongside S Srinivasa Iyengar. She went to school at St Ignatius Convent, Palayamkottai, and later did her intermediate in Sarah... Continue Reading →
"My maternal aunt Ms. Ruby Moitra was born into a family of Bengali migrants in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. She was the first woman to graduate in the family with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Sagar University in 1956. Two years later she became the first woman in my family to receive a Master's degree... Continue Reading →
"I am Priyadarshni. My college is Jayaraj Annapackim Womens college at Periyakulam. I completed a B.Com degree in 1995. My dad completed 5th std and my mom 10th. My elder brother missed the chance to wear the coat and hat.But I was the only girl child in my family and I wore the graduation coat... Continue Reading →
With friends Kamala Ramaswamy (writer), Champaka Malini (writer) and Hema (theatre artiste); I am second from left in this group. "First Woman Graduate in the Bapu Family "I am Prabhamani Rao who completed B.A and graduated from Mysore University (at that time there was no Bangalore University) in 1953. I was 19 and a half when... Continue Reading →
"I graduated from the Queen Mary's College, Mylapore, Chennai in the year 1970. My father's happiness was that he showed it by sending me a postal card putting the Degree after my name ! I did my Graduation after my marriage after my school finals. Thanks to my wonderful husband for his support. After me, my elder... Continue Reading →
"Parvathy Mahadevan( nee KK Parvathy), was born on May 6th , 1927, In Thrissur Kerala. She is the 6th daughter among 7 of 9 siblings. She graduated in BA, Natural Science from the Queen Marys College for women in Chennai in the year 1947. She graduated in Karnatic Music from the College of Music, Chennai,... Continue Reading →
"I come from a very much educated family. Yes! my grandmother was a teacher herself in a school. My mother, my aunties and elder women cousins were all teachers because my grandmother was of the opinion that every woman should stand on her own legs (but only upto teacher training), and then work as teachers... Continue Reading →
"Manjulika Mukherjee was the first college graduate from my entire extended family combining my maternal and paternal side. She has been my inspiration since I was a child. "Mamoni" as I called her, was the first born child of my maternal grandfather, Late Sri Krishnadhan Mukherjee, who was an idealistic non-violent Gandhian freedom fighter and was... Continue Reading →
"The name of my mother before marriage when she passed her graduation in 1935, was Leela Pingle, Residence: Sangamner, Maharashtra. Her degree was called GA, i.e. Graduate in Arts, from Karve Vidyapeeth for Women in Pune. The photo was taken around the same time. After the degree she worked for two years as a teacher in a... Continue Reading →
"My name is Kishwar Sultana. I am 43 now and heading an NGO - Insan Foundation Trust. Among many boys and girls of my extended family I was the only one who went to college– even completed the 10th grade. I graduated from Lahore Collage for Women – Lahore in 1994. My three sisters were... Continue Reading →
"Mary Kanakammal Ramaiya was born in 1894 as the tenth child of Mr.Samuel Sargunar and Mrs.Gnanapoo Ammal in Conjeevaram. True to the genius of her father who was not only the first graduate from Tirunelveli district, also proficient in seven languages including Latin, Greek, French, Sanskrit and Hindusthani, Kanakammal completed her B.A., degree in Philosophy... Continue Reading →
"Dr.K.Jayashree, Former Professor of Geography, Queen Marys College, Chennai. She was the first graduate for the whole of our family." Contributor: daughter Chandra Gupta
"She graduated in 1944 and was the first graduate in our family. She did her Masters and earned the Doctorate degree from the Calcutta University. She was a professor and became the principal of Bethune College which produced India's and the whole British Empire's first women graduates in 1883. She was a renowned classical dancer too. She... Continue Reading →
"I am Belli Lakshmi Ramakrishnan. This is a photograph of me taken in 1980. I am the first women graduate, post-graduate and Tamil Nadu State level gazette officer from my family. I can also proudly claim to be the first woman Post Graduate and first woman Gazette officer from The Nilgiris District, and from the... Continue Reading →
"Arati Banerjee ( 82 years;) Graduated in 1954. Agra University. BA in English/History/Sanskrit Sangeet Prabhakar from Prayag Sangeet Samiti, Allahabad. BT ( Allahabad University) Arati Banerjee nee Mukherjee completed her graduation in 1954 from Agra University in English, Sanskrit and History. One among 14 children in a middle-class family, Ms Banerjee’s thirst for knowledge was probably... Continue Reading →
"I am one of the First Graduates in the family. I completed my B.A in Psychology from the Presidency College Madras in 1971. I was a good student in school and my father was very keen that I complete my graduation. We were a lower middle class family and spending on education was not a... Continue Reading →
"My grandmother on my mother’s side, Manashi Guha (nee Dasgupta), who we call Didu, was the first graduate in our family from Dacca University in 1946 with Philosophy and Mathematics. In the wake of the Partition, she came to Calcutta with her family and began working in an office of the Labour Department of West... Continue Reading →
Photo taken in 1901 C.Amba Bai, the First Woman Graduate in My Family "This is the story of my great-grand mother Chennagiri Amba Bai (1889-1970), married at 12 and widowed at the age of 24, with three young children to support. Amba Bai, affectionately called Ambi, was born into an orthodox Brahmin family in Tumkur..... Continue Reading →
"Kaveri J graduated from A.P.C Mahalakshmi College for Women, Tuticorin (Madurai Kamaraj University), with a B.Sc in Mathematics in 1979-80. When she was in School, Kaveri's parents had no plans of getting her educated further. Around this time, the A.P.C Mahalakshmi College for Women was started, and to get more enrollment in the area, the... Continue Reading →
"Our great grandmother, Kamala Ramanujam was the first graduate from our family. She did her B.A Graduation from all men Government college at Kumbakonam (It was considered as Cambridge of South India). A special permission was obtained to study in a college for men. There was one more woman who studied with her. She graduated... Continue Reading →
A certificate from the school that GK Meenambal spent many years at and retired from as Assistant Headmistress With her sister and brother-in-law With her brother A group photo "Prajnya Trust's call for articles from readers of "The Hindu" regarding the first woman graduate in the family has evoked nostalgic thoughts of our Great Grand Aunt, G.K.... Continue Reading →
Girija Jayanandan received a BA degree in English Literature, in April 1967, at the PSGR Krishnammal College, Coimbatore. "I was the first graduate in my family of ten children [three boys and seven girls of whom one brother and five sisters survived], and I was the ninth child who grew up smelling food prepared in... Continue Reading →
We have received dozens of submissions, and photos continue to pour in at the time of writing this post. We are absolutely delighted and are grateful to all of you who spread the word and/or sent us photos. Please bear with us as we streamline contributions and ready them for online display. They will be... Continue Reading →
"Dr. Dipti Tripathi graduated in 1944 and was the first graduate in our family. She did her Masters and earned a Doctorate degree from Calcutta University. She was a professor and became the principal of Bethune College which produced India's and the whole British Empire's first women graduates in 1883. She was a renowned classical dancer too. She... Continue Reading →
"I am happy to introduce my wife - Dr. Brindha Moorthy, the first woman graduate in the family - from my side as well as her side. I should thank my father-in-law for having sent his daughter to college- that too a Medical college, in the 1960s when college education for girls was frowned upon... Continue Reading →
A PRAJNYA ARCHIVES PROJECT TO MARK INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY 2014 FEBRUARY 8 TO MARCH 7, 2014 Who was the first woman in your family to graduate from college/university? Do you know and do you have photos that tell her story? Prajnya invites you to share the photos with us by submitting them to "The First... Continue Reading →
Dr. Vibhuti Patel, professor at SNDT university, is seen here participating with fellow activists in demonstrations against gender violence in Mumbai at the end of 2012. The occasion was a protest gathering of 18 women's rights organisations on 22nd December 2012, at the same spot where a young woman was slashed with a sickle by... Continue Reading →
A Prajnya 'Life Stories' entry Interview and photos, courtesy Archana Venkatesh
Dr. Leela Dube, pioneering scholar of women's studies and feminist anthropology Photographer Mukul Dube. Photograph shared with Prajnya by Dr. Vibhuti Patel.
Leela Dube with colleagues in Segovia, Spain (July 1990) (1923-2012) L to R Leela Dube, Veena Mazumdar, Neera Desai, Hanna Papanek and Gail Omvedt in Segovia, Spain (July 1990)
[slidesh ow] Some images from a full day in the cafeteria at Cognizant Technology Solutions' beautiful campus. Enthusiastic members started visiting even as we began to pull the photographs out of their plastic wrappers. We must have had over 200 visitors. We got most people to sign our guestbook--in fact we opened up a few... Continue Reading →
The Rainmakers exhibit had 2 winners! Based on jury comments and visitors' observations, we gave two first prizes. One prize, a photo printer, went to Prasant Mohanty of Madhya Pradesh for his photo: 'Surviving. being resourceful.' The other first prize, a gift certificate, was awarded to Sakshi Kumar for 'University Graduate, New Delhi.' Surviving. Being... Continue Reading →
Filmed by Rajesh Advani.
Mythily Sivaraman at the United Nations (New York), 1967. The photograph was taken when Mythily worked from July 1966 to mid-1968 as Research Assistant in the Permanent Mission of India to the UN. Her research work related to non-self-governing territories and their problems and included the preparation of statements to be made by the Indian... Continue Reading →
Anjum Zamrooda Habib, Srinagar, February 4, 2011 "Anjum Zamrooda Habib is part of a human rights organization in Kashmir and is seen here protesting for the rights of women in Kashmir. These protests took place after two girls from Sopore were killed by unknown gunmen in Kashmir. She also preaches Islam among the Muslim women community. She... Continue Reading →
Outside Kathmandu City. Photo submitted by Arun Budhathoki.
Kathmandu, Nepal. Photo submitted by Arun Budhathoki.
A woman who sells food outside Kathmandu, Nepal. "On the way to Jiri, outskirts of Kathmandu City, a place for trekkers to begin their journey." Photo submitted by Arun Budhathoki.
Contributor Lokendra Singh Kot (Bhopal)
Photo submitted by Lokendra Singh Kot (Bhopal).
Shanta bai, "woman of substance," (based in Mumbai) is nothing short of an entrepreneur, who has spent her life combining domestic service with micro-enterprises that include a taxi service. She has raised her children and helped raise her grandchildren well, and ensured they have access to better opportunities than she did. Her work and life... Continue Reading →
"This photo was taken during the Joy Of Giving Week in 2010. Along with Ms .Malathi, trustee of Tanker foundation, we visited 5 orphanages and fed 650 orphan children. The above photo shows me with the kids of the Seva Samaj orphanage in Chennai. " Submitted by K. Nandhini Santhala Dinesh, Director Of DSIN Technology... Continue Reading →
Meghna Guhathakurta and Rina Barman of ICSSR with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, 1973 during the visit of the 1st Education Commission of Bangladesh to India (contributor Meghna Guhathakurta)
Basanti Guhathakurta, present in the picture, along with Dr. Khudrat e Khoda, renowned scientist and chair of the Education Commission, talking with President V.V. Giri , Raj Bhavan, New Delhi (1973). Photo submitted by Meghna Guhathakurta.
"Meeting with President V.V.Giri of India 1973 , accompanying my mother with the Khudrat e Khoda Education Commission. Seen in the picture are my mother Basanti Guhathakurta, and Prof. M.U. Ahmed, psychologist, members of the commission and myself (Meghna Guhathakurta)." Photo submitted by Meghna Guhathakurta
1954: Basanti Guhathakurta, headmistress of Maniza Rahman Girls School, Gandaria, Dhaka (old town), back row standing 4th from left, during a cultural function. Centre front row: Begum Shamsunnahar, writer and student of Rokeya Shakhawat Hossain; on her right, Asha Lata Sen veteran Congress leader; The rest are teachers, volunteers (standing) and leading community leaders (in the... Continue Reading →
Aideu Handique, the first heroine of Assamese cinema. Photo submitted by Nilim Dutta.
Potter in Beldaur panchayat, Khagaria, 28.1.2011. "Many female artisans, indulge in pottery work to establish an alternative and local source of livelihood for existence." Photo contributed by Eklavya Prasad.
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