How Intersectional Feminist Movements Shaped Maharashtra and yet Struggles Remain the Same

“The lack of a sensitive approach by the local police is the worst thing I have seen while handling social issues. The Women’s or Children’s Commission also doesn’t work as expected in sensitive cases such as child trafficking,” says Mumbai-based social activist Madhu Shankar, while speaking about one of the many problems affecting women, children and marginalised communities that shape modern Mumbai, even as the historic Stree Mukti Movement marks 50 years.

Even when the UN declared 1975 as International Women’s Year, Indian women were struggling with many issues, several of which went unheard. Marking a historic movement in October that year, more than 600 women from across the country reportedly defied the Emergency and gathered for the Stree Mukti Sangharsha Parishad in Pune.

It was from this same display of solidarity that the Stree Mukti Sanghatana (SMS) was born in Mumbai—a city that recently witnessed a three-day programme marking the half-century of the feminist movement.

Although unrelated to the movement’s celebrations, Mumbai’s red-light area of Kamathipura also came alive artistically over the weekend with a two-day showcase of handmade products and artwork curated and crafted by women living in the area. Alongside a theatre performance featuring transgender persons and highlighting the challenges they face in Kamathipura, the BMC school on Lane 5 also offered glimpses of the art projects in which these women have participated.

What shaped the feminist movements in Maharashtra?

The female literacy rate in Maharashtra stood at 18.69 per cent in 1971 and rose to 24.82 per cent in 1981, according to Census data. However, exact figures for 1975—the year in which the movement took place—are not available.

Alongside the grassroots initiatives undertaken by SMS, its artistic approach to raising awareness has remained popular. Beginning with the flagship play Mulgi Zhali Ho, which aimed to promote the cause of the girl child, the group has staged more than 5,000 performances focusing on themes such as women’s literacy and violence against women.

Over the past fifty years, the Sukanu Committee—formed to guide policy implementation on social issues—along with other bodies, has grown to comprise 70 organisations spread across various regions of Maharashtra. Several constituent organisations have also been consistently working to advance the women’s movement across the state.

What is regarded as SMS’s most groundbreaking work involves women waste-pickers through the Parisar Bhagini Vikas Sangha (PBVS). Since 1999, the organisation has highlighted how waste picking is a caste- and gender-based occupation carried out by women under unsafe conditions. It has reportedly organised more than 5,000 women into self-help groups and cooperatives. Today, these women run waste management units, composting facilities and biogasification plants.

Since 1975, however, the large western state of Maharashtra has seen a diversification into a wide range of movements. These include the Anti-Rape Movement (Balatkar Virodhi Manch) in Nagpur, which led to massive protests across the state in response to the controversial Supreme Court judgment in the Mathura rape case. The movement later played an instrumental role in contributing to the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1983.

Meanwhile, the Garbhling Pariksha va Garbhling Virodhi Manch, a movement against sex-selective abortion, emerged in 1987. Around the same time, organisations such as Pune’s Nari Samata Manch and Kolhapur’s Mahila Dakshata Samiti came together to establish counselling centres and vigilance committees to combat domestic violence and dowry deaths.

The 1980s also witnessed a historic strike, following which the Pune Molkarin Sanghatana and the Vidarbha Molkarin Sanghatana were formed in 1980. Based in Pune and Vidarbha respectively, these organisations fought for the rights and dignity of domestic workers.

The intersection of the feminist movements with the marginalised

The period also witnessed the rise of Dalit feminist movements. During the 1980s and 1990s, autonomous Dalit feminist groups such as the Mahila Sansad in Mumbai and the Maharashtra Dalit Mahila Sanghatana emerged, with the aim of linking the anti-caste movement with feminism. These groups also established 25 December as India’s Women’s Liberation Day.

In recent years, as social activist Monica Raheja points out, a growing focus on sustainability and the strong emergence of Dalit and Adivasi voices have been instrumental in challenging the “urban middle-class” bias of mainstream Indian feminism. Raheja, who is also the co-founder of Pad Squad, an initiative that provides sanitary products to Dalit women, believes such efforts have significantly contributed to the strengthening of Dalit feminism.

The women’s wing of the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal also launched the influential Talak Mukti Morcha in 1985, demanding an end to verbal divorce and the recognition of women’s rights to alimony. Triple talaq was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court on 22 August 2017, and the practice was subsequently made a criminal offence with the enactment of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019.

Over the past decade, the most vocal movement has been the Me Too movement of 2018, particularly among urban women. With Mumbai as its epicentre—owing to its proximity to the Hindi film industry—many women from the industry accused colleagues of misconduct, and the movement resonated far beyond cinema at a broader societal level.

“It was a powerful movement that left me with a sense of togetherness. It was a realisation that we don’t have to carry our experiences in secret. It was a shared struggle for many women,” says producer and artist Monica Raheja, reflecting on the recent feminist movements that have moved her. She adds, “It saw women coming together and supporting each other to speak up; our collective voice is powerful enough to demand accountability and push for a safer, more respectful world.”

Raheja, the co-founder of Pad Squad, also highlights the impact of Jameela Begum of the Ghar Bachao Ghar Banao Andolan. In 2020, Begum took it upon herself to ensure that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) included sanitary pads in its list of essential items and provided them to women from economically weaker sections.

The present-day state, not without woes

However, even decades after such a significant movement—one that managed to defy rigid restrictions during the Emergency—Maharashtra, often described as one of India’s most “progressive” states, continues to grapple with many of the same challenges it faced when the movement began.

According to the 2011 Census, Maharashtra’s female literacy rate stood at 75.87 per cent. Meanwhile, between 2021 and 2023, the combined number of cases of infanticide, foeticide and newborn abandonment in the state was 347, as reported by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

Dr. Pooja Vrushali Vijay from the Stree Mukti League (SML) calls the current-day challenges of Maharashtra. "rooted in capitalist patriarchy". "ASHA workers and Anganwadi workers continue to struggle for fair wages, job security, social protection, and recognition as workers despite being the backbone of public health and childcare systems. Their work is labelled as 'voluntary' which allows the state to deny them minimum wages and basic labour rights," she says. 

Highlighting the problems of the domestic workers in the state, Dr. Pooja Vijay further says, "Domestic workers, another large section of urban women workers, face long working hours, low and irregular wages, lack of legal protection, and routine exploitation within private households, making their struggles largely invisible."

Across both urban and rural Maharashtra, these challenges are deeply affected by "capitalist patriarchy", the coordinator notes and reminds how it benefits from women’s underpaid labour and views them as secondhand citizens. "There is an urgent need for collective struggle, organisation, and people’s movements that raise these issues and work to create an egalitarian society."

Activist Madhu Shankar echoes several of these concerns. “Unfortunately, even today, only those women who can create ‘undue drama’ manage to get their complaints registered, while many are not taken seriously at police stations,” says Shankar, who has long worked in the field of women and child development. “I strongly recommend that the government conduct criminal background and character checks of police officers, constables and other ranks before appointing them, so that individuals who hinder timely justice do not enter the system.”

Shankar also highlights other systemic challenges she has personally faced in recent years. “I used to teach wheel and hand pottery to children in Vashi, Sector 29. Students came from Vashi and even from other areas,” she recalls, referring to an experience that dates back around 11 or 12 years. “I was harassed by local politicians and their associates for hafta (extortion money) soon after I started the class, which I refused to pay. As a result, I began facing obstacles in conducting the classes and eventually had to shut them down.”

Shankar, who has been vocal on several social issues, has also played a key role in tackling the drug menace in Vashi’s Sector 29. She continues to monitor illegal activities in her area and file complaints where necessary. While she admits that this has brought her personal difficulties, she says it has also encouraged other women to come forward and share their concerns. “I have realised that issues exist, but people are afraid of politicians and therefore do not speak up,” she says.

Raheja, who frequently visits rural areas of Maharashtra, draws attention to deeply layered problems that often remain outside the media spotlight. “In one village, there is a custom where, if a woman is unable to conceive within a year or so of marriage, she is sent back to her parental home and forced to live the rest of her life as a single woman, while the man is free to remarry,” she says. She adds that many young girls are groomed early for marriage and childbearing, a reality they often accept as their fate.

“There are many such regressive customs. Menstrual hygiene and access to sanitary products remain limited. Forced hysterectomies and the economic hardships faced by women working in sugarcane fields in Beed are deeply troubling,” Monica Raheja says, describing these practices as “inhumane”.

Speaking to Local Samosa about other pressing realities, Madhu Shankar also points to the lack of awareness around the queer community. “The LGBTQIA+ community is still not widely accepted in India, largely due to rigid interpretations of tradition, even though our culture has ancient roots that recognised diverse identities,” she says.

Maharashtra accounted for 10.18 per cent of total cognisable crimes against women in India in 2022, ranking second after Uttar Pradesh in terms of overall incidents. The state also recorded a 15 per cent increase in crimes against women, rising from 39,526 cases in 2021 to 45,331 cases in 2022.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau’s 2020 report, Mumbai ranks second among metropolitan cities in crimes against women. Meanwhile, a recent report released by the Mumbai Police indicates an 11 per cent increase in rape cases between 2024 and 2025 in the city—often regarded as one of the safer urban spaces for women.

So, fifty years after a mass movement that reshaped the state’s feminist landscape, what gives women hope for the years ahead? “Women are more aware and alert now. We are openly talking about our rights and we know our duties too,” says Shankar.

Raheja echoes similar sentiments. “Women are evolving, and in this era, women across Maharashtra are rewriting their own stories. They have moved beyond merely receiving support from social programmes and have stepped into the driver’s seat, taking charge as leaders and decision-makers shaping the state’s future policies. Change is slow, and acceptance of that change is even slower, leading to delayed implementation. Despite progress, this remains a battle yet to be fully won. We are not there yet.”