INDIA -
Born to Bondage
41 minutes
TC Vision VO IV
3.10 Rural setting This is rural India and a scene from a play is being performed. These actors are part of government propaganda to outlaw an event which happens every day in villages across the country.
3.26 Throws baby on ground Baby girls suffer a fate once thought consigned to the past. They're killed because their parents only wanted a son.
TITLE: BORN TO BONDAGE
3.57 Woman working in room For generations women have been treated like second class citizens propelled into a lifetime of subservience and hardship.
4.07 CU girl's face At a young age girls like Pasupathy have to work in dingy conditions. Child labour is still legal in India. For every 1'000 boxes, she earns just 25 cents
4.25 MS girl's face Pasupathy, 11 yearsI don’t miss school very much. Everyone here has to work. We need the money.
4.33 WS fields After work Pasupathy helps her mother in the fields. Like most girls she has little chance of an education. Her father's a farmer and it was clear which of his children should go to school.
4.44 WS father StatementShunmulgavel RakkammalfarmerMy son goes to school. My daughter has to work. I can’t send them all to school - it’s free but I don’t have the money for school books and pencils.
5.045.24 WS school yard Most of the country’s 115 million working children are girls. Widespread poverty means families need to send their children to work. The state has tried to reverse this trend but without funds they have little chance of success although some schools are up and running Bhup Singh YadavOrganisation agianst bonded labourWe run schools particularly for children who are in bonded labour. They should have a chance. For every child that comes to school we give them a kilo of grain a day worth 5 rupees.
5.42 Girl walking It's only a small amount but for Santosh Kumani it's something to take home to her parents. She’s one of the lucky girls who go to school but three hours before it starts, she helps her mother and sisters clean bulb fittings.
6.02 Girls working It's a daily chore and for a 25 kilo sack of plugs they earn a pittance. Santosh resents the burden on her and her schoolwork.
6.13 CU girl Statement Santosh Kumani, 10 yearsI’m always so tired - in school too. I’m always working and I don’t have time for anything else, even homework. I’ve got no free time to play.
6.35 WS thatched building And it's the same story across India. This is a factory in the north and the workforce is made up of women and girls. They make glass bangles, which adorn the wrists of Indian women. In the nearby city of Firozabad around 50'000 children are making these at home. They'd be worse off without the money but they still feel fate has cheated them.
7.03 CU woman Statement Mina KumariWork never stops for us. We cook, clean the house, wash and make bangles. The men come home from work and are served. In my next life I want to be born as a boy.
7.17 Man at book shelf Swarmi Agnivesh is a priest and a politician. He feels uneasy about the state of women's rights and campaigns against injustice. Many of his followers consider him a saint.
7.36 CU man Swarmi AgniveshParliamentary delegate and Hindu priestSuccessive governments have acted very carelessly. They’ve abused their constitutional mandate and responsibilities. As a result we have 135 million children that don’t go to school. Sixty-five million child bonded labourers. It's a very depressing situation. As long as these children don’t get a good quality relevant full time education - at least until they’re 14 years old, with skills training, there's no hope of any break through in the vicious cycle of poverty, unemployment, child labour and population growth etc.
8.21 Girls on street The last Indian census in 1991 recorded a population of over 900 million people. Sometime around the millenium the population will excede 1 billion. Many will survive by begging, scavenging through rubbish for food or wood to burn. Most girls will pass on the cycle of illiteracy for future generations. At the beginning of the next century every second illiterate person in the world will be Indian, yet the government will spend millions on developing nuclear arms.
9.04 WS crowd gathering But there are some in high office who are trying to change things. As a Brahmin, Kamal Kishore belongs to the highest caste in India. The caste system divides Indian society into rich and poor, with no chance of escape. Kamal rejects the caste system as exploitation and subservience.
9.24 MCU man Statement Kamal Kishore JKSMS - street children'sOrganisationThe Brahmins only care about themselves. One is born into a caste and can’t do anything about it. In Hindu mythology, poverty and exploitation result from actions in an earlier life. The Brahmins call it the will of God.
9.43 WS crowd walking The UN’s children's agency UNICEF has been active in India for 50 years. It's director, Carol Bellamy is touring villages to check on local projects funded by the organisation.
9.55 MS two woman She also recognises there are major issues in India concerning women's rights but strongly identifies education as the key to change.
10.11 MCU woman Statement Carol Bellamy UNICEF executive director I think one of the best kinds of things that can happen to the community generally is if girls are able to get an education, just a primary school education then they're more likely to take care of themselves - They're more likely to have healthy children. They'll understand the importance of nutrition both for the boy and the girl so it so it has implications for women being treated as lesser human beings.
10.44 Women in doorway But if it's not poverty or the caste system hindering girls then child marriages offer another obstacle. It's still customary in India for families to marry off their daughters at a young age. In most parts it's an economic necessity relieving the household of another mouth to feed. In some cases, the unfortunate girls can be married off whilst they are still toddlers.
11.12 MCU woman Kamla Panchalmother We married off many of our daughters when they were three years old. That’s the custom. I didn’t know it was forbidden. Now my daughter is staying with us until she's older.
11.26 MCU young woman Vimla Panchal, 14 years I would like to choose my own husband but that’s not possible. I can’t go to school. Everything is decided for me. I am promised
11.41 WS village setting Even though a father will have to supply a dowry or a sum of money with his daughter's marriage it means in the long term his family is less likely to suffer financial hardship
11.56 MCU turbaned man Statement Ramlal Berura, father I had three daughters and my brother had two. It was a bargain if we could marry them all together. It costs us less. Then people said we had to keep our daughters and send them to school
12.16 WS field But customs will remain as long as there's illiteracy and poverty. Almost half of India's population lives below the poverty line and the ranks of the poor are swelling at a rate of 10 million a year. Girls can expect to inherit jobs with a low income and no job security. Often they'll work the longest hours in the worst conditions while the opportunities for self employment are almost non existent.
12.52 MCU young woman Statement Tara Lal Ragar, workerI work from dawn to sunset. We earn about 1.5 dollars a day. At least we earn something otherwise there’s also most no work for us. We have a saying: The sand is our mother. We are born into sand and will die in sand
13.10 Child and bricks And many women don't live to see old age. Frequent and continuous pregnancies means a woman in her twenties is 40% more likely to die than a man. The pressure of combining work with household duties in marriage can also lead to a decline in health. The world bank is attempting to change this by funding new health services and promoting family planning but so far they've had limited success.
13.41 Interior house Until recently Prakshi was going to school, but now her parents are marrying her off. Her family succeeded in finding the money to pay for the wedding but she’s a reluctant bride.
13.56 MCU young woman Statement Prakshi Devi, bride I’m not happy. I’m too young to marry. I want to continue to school. I’m sad because I don’t have any choice.
14.11 Procession A typical wedding procession and a bumper pay-out for one half of the newly created family. Even though the giving of dowries is commonplace, it's actually illegal in India but court cases are rare so the tradition flourishes. The dowry can wreak financial havoc with parents of several daughters and while this wedding is a chance for one family to increase their wealth, for the other it could spell disaster.
14.55 Two women dancing For some, weddings offer a real chance to party.
15.05 MS bride and friends Prakshi is going to get a quick look at her future husband. This is the last time she’ll be together with her friends. The exact time of the wedding is determined by an astrologer, as is the suitability of her husband - who's from the same caste. Even in the cities young Indian men let their parents find them a bride. Cupid's arrow rarely has a chance to fly here.
15.30 Cooking Finally it's Praskshi's wedding day and over 1'500 guests have been invited. Her parents have paid well and have borrowed heavily for the privilege of offloading their daughter. Even for the poor, a wedding is always matter of pride and standing.
15.57 WS room of gifts The gifts are usually given when the young couple are engaged. The bridegroom's family receive clothing, jewellery and saris as well as TV's and video recorders, all part of India's new consumerism. Strange items considering the village doesn't even have electricity.
16.27 Groom on horse Indian weddings at this level of caste are extremely lavish and ornate with no expense spared. The dowry can often continue to be haggled over even as the wedding procession winds its way through the village. If the bride’s had a previous boyfriend then the groom is seen as her salvation and his family can demand even more money.
17.10 Couple facing camera If the newlyweds look a little estranged, it’s because their marriage was arranged with business and status in mind. The bride will spend a last night at home with her parents. Tomorrow she fulfils her destiny as a married Indian woman, to become her husband ‘s slave.
17.27 WS front yard This is the groom's family and they're preparing themselves for the arrival of Prakshi who’ll have to fit in with the family structure and routine. She'll now belong to them and be required to work in her mother-in-law's kitchen. As the bride and newest family member she'll also get the worst jobs.
17.56 MS woman Statement Vimala Devi mother-in-law My daughter-in-law has to help me. She has to do the washing, prepare the food and keep the house clean - she has to manage all the housework
18.10 Car arriving From now on Prakshi will have to care for both her husband and his family. They'll decide if she can continue at school, or if she has to start work.
18.25 Groom emerging Young Indian women have little alternative but to follow these customs. After the birth of a son a woman's status improves and her role is secured but a woman without family ties in India cannot survive. If she divorces her husband, her return home brings shame on the family and she is cast out.
19.03 CU bride Prakshi like all wives is supposed to consider her husband a god, according to the scriptures.
19.18 WS field and workers If it's not the husband then it's the father who gets respect. With marriage, a woman's subservience is transferred from her father to her husband. As a lowly farmer, Prakshi’s father had to sell land and take out a loan to pay for her wedding. The loan is a great burden for the remaining household members. Prakshi’s father estimates it will take them five years to repay the debt.
19.57 Family and photos Although marriage is seen as a great institution within Indian society it brings mixed blessings for the fathers of daughters.
20.12 MS father Statement Satya Marain Sharma father If I’d only had sons I’d be happier. Daughters are only part of the family for a few years. They leave and also you have to pay out a lot of money for them. As well as that, we’ve got less help in the house. It’s the opposite for boys. It’s much better to have sons.
20.34 Children entering yard Prakshi can no longer see visitors. And as a young wife, she cannot leave the home of her-in-laws without a chaperone. In the first few years of marriage, the bride is only allowed to speak to strangers in the presence of her family.
20.53 LS woman with plate But marriage can be a one-way ticket to domestic abuse. Radha Sharma was sexually abused by her alcoholic husband who was continually demanding more dowry from her family. After years of suffering she finally left him after he tried to kill her. She found refuge with her older brother and his family. Throughout India thousands of women are raped, humiliated and beaten.
21.28 Woman leaving yard And although women like Radha are often the innocent victims, in the eyes of Indian society she's failed and brought shame on her family.
21.40 MCU woman Statement Radha Sharma divorcéeEven in my village many women are abused by husbands. Life is worth nothing for divorced women. Even my brother disapproves as he feeds me. That’s no life.
22.04 Soldiers Thousands of women don’t survive marriage. If their dowry's aren't large enough, they're sometimes killed by their husbands and his family. The man is then free to marry again and demand a new dowry. Most of these murders are classified as ‘accidents’ or suicides.
22.24 CU burnt post Here the scorched ground and charred remains are all that's left of a woman who was burned to death by her husband. The story was that her clothes caught fire while she was cooking. Government figures suggest that throughout India a woman dies violently every 100 minutes but the real figure is undoubtedly much higher.
22.46 MCU man Statement Swarmi Agnivesh parliamentary delegate and Hindu priest“We find that in the name of dowry Women are tortured. The bride is sometimes starved and beaten up to bring more and more consumer durables and when she vocalises her helplessness she's sometimes burnt to death, literally burnt alive. There are hundreds of thousands of such cases in India and the number is increasing.”
23.19 Pregnant woman Sometimes woman are killed by their husbands because they failed to bear a son. A son means a chance of economic stability and the opportunity to be looked after in old age. This explains why India is one of the few countries in the world to have less women than men. In recent years, since it's been possible to determine the sex of children by ultra-scan, female foetuses have been routinely aborted. At the beginning of 1996, a law was brought into force, banning the determining of a child’s sex before birth. Ultra-scan labs used to advertise with slogans like ‘Rather 500 rupees today than a 100 times that tomorrow for dowries'. Now scans are only allowed if a medical problem is suspected. But in a developing country like India, families find a way of bypassing the law.
24.43 Crowded clinic For the poorest in society who can't afford ultra-scans there are clinics like this one which offer abortions at a cut price. It's a desperate act which some will encounter several times but in their eyes it's preferable to the infanticide of their baby girls. Even if girls survive abortion or being killed at birth, less access to scant resources means that infant girls are less likely to survive. Whilst contraception is being used more and more widely, according to the National Commission for Women, there are over 6 million abortions of female foetuses every year in India. After giving birth to a boy many women get sterilised to prevent them having a daughter.
25.38 MCU man Statement Swarmi AgniveshParlimentary Delegate and Hindu Priest It has been found out in a Bombay clinic. When Investigations were carried out. In one year there were 8,000 abortions. But the tragic part of it was out of 8,000, 7999 of them came out to be female foetuses. That shows the type of havoc.
26.10 Nurse carrying baby The last census in 1991 revealed the increase in the birth of boys over girls. In states like Rajasthan for every 1,000 boys born there are 870 girls. This is a reversal of the worldwide trend, where 106 girls are usually born to every 100 boys.
26.33 Mother and children For women with an illegitimate child or who's marriage has ended, life on the streets is their only option. Their poor status in society means they'll too have to scavenge rubbish to survive. Such is the shortage of food, that their daughters must help with the sorting and gathering. As well as being exposed to violence or rape, life under these conditions is extremely hard.
27.12 MCU old woman Statement UdyaSanghirag collectorI start before sunrise. I make food for the family, carry water, then collect rubbish. This is no life. Hopefully my grandchildren will be richer, go to school. Here women work themselves to death
27.27 WS shanty town Thirty percent of Jaipur's population live in the slums. Here there’s no clean water, toilets or electricity.
27.43 Group young children Skin diseases, bronchitis and malnourishment are rife. Families pay 80 cents to live here which is almost half their daily wage. All these residents belong to thelower caste, the so called untouchables. They refer to themselves as Dalits or the trampled upon
27.58 Most of the men are unemployed and gamble away the little money they have. Many of the women are prostitutes which earns them more than collecting rags and rubbish. Mahatma Gandhi fought to improve the untouchables position in society - without much success.
28.28 Profile woman Kumkum Sharma is a social worker and is trying to help the young women on the streets.
28.35 MCU woman Statement Kumkum Sharmasocial workerThe women don’t want to collect rags. They have to do it. The men gamble the money or borrow it, then the women have to pay it back. Many prostitute themselves otherwise they’ll never escape their financial dependence.
28.57 street Some girls end up in red light districts like this one where sex costs as little as a bottle of beer. They’re nearly all untouchables and so aren’t allowed to mingle with higher ranking castes except when they’re servicing clients through sex. Many women have been sold to pimps by their families who couldn't afford their dowries. Mistreatment and diseases like Aids means they’ll die young.
29.24 MCU woman Statement prostituteIf I had a daughter, I wouldn’t like it if she ended up here. It’s terrible.
29.32 MCU woman Statement prostituteI come from a poor family. They couldn’t pay for a dowry. That’s why I’m here.
29.40 street Prostitution only highlights the problems facing India's women. These girls are treated as outcasts, condemned by society and their families, yet used by men from all castes.
29.56 Entering rooms The exploitation of women though the generations has become ingrained, even within the family.
30.08 MCU doctor Statement Smarajit JanadoctorProstitutes won’t be taken back by their families. When they’re old, they die alone. And, no one cares about them. That’s the story for older people in the sex business.
30.30 WS crowds dancing Only once a year can women let their hair down - during the Holi festival in March. Holi used to be a fertility festival. Today, it’s one of the most important Hindu celebrations with seven days of festivities. It’s a time to get merry and even the men join in.
31.00 LS temple India’s six great religions have numerous divinities; saints, prophets or gurus which are all worshipped. Although Indians have the greatest number of holidays this one brings the whole country to a standstill, as crowds of both sexes pour onto the streets and smear each other with powder.
31.27 CU man being hit with sticks And it’s here that India’s downtrodden women exact a brief revenge, symbolically at least. They queue up to give an unlucky man a good hiding. Since the nationalistic BJP party came to power, Hinduism has taken on a fundamentalist dimension drawing contrasts with Muslim society. Now women are more discriminated against than before.
32.00 Burning fire In the evening huge fires are lit to celebrate the legend of a King's son who apparently rose from the flames unhurt.
32.15 Burning fire And as if by chance a young man suddenly jumps out from the fire. According to this legend boys are like rays of light from heaven while girls are evil and are left to burn.
32.29 Exterior cinema Few Indian woman stand up for their rights, but one has dared to defend herself, Phoolan Devi. The film Bandit Queen portrays her life story. She belonged to a lowly caste of fishermen and was married off at 11 to a much older man. She was then sexually abused and raped by several higher caste men.
32.54 Excerpt film She became a outlaw and led a gang which killed policemen and blackmailed large landowners.
33.05 Woman and press Later, Phoolan Devi was arrested and sentenced to 12 years in jail for multiple murder. The lower castes consider her a heroine, a symbol of justice. They want to elect her to parliament. She’s preparing for her campaign and her main theme is the exploitation of women.
33.34 Archive photo Phoolan Devi claims that women have no choice but to take revenge on men. In 1981, she and her gang shot the 22 men who had raped her, listed here. She remains defiant and calls oppressed women to arms.
33.48 MCU woman Statement Phoolan Devi former banditI belong to the untouchables. The upper castes are ruled by men and they torture the women. Women are people and not like bedclothes that the man can just use and throw away. If women in India don’t finally get their rights, then I’m sure that soon all the girls and women will get hold of weapons and become like Phoolan Devi, who fought against big land owners
34.16 LS woman: yellow shall Bhanwari Devi also had the courage to fight back. She’s a social worker from a low caste, and heard about the plans for an illegal marriage between a one year-old girl and a three year-old boy. She informed the authorities and the marriage was stopped.
34.40 MS woman Statement Bhanwari Devi social workerAfterwards five men came. They were furious with me because I’d told the authorities about the child marriage. They threw me on the floor. One held my hands and two others raped me. My husband thrashed them.
34.56 Girl with baby This 15 year-old girl was also raped by men of a higher caste. She became pregnant and her father reported them to the police. She kept the baby – unable to afford an abortion or too ashamed to tell anyone about her pregnancy. Her father describes how the tragedy came about.
35.17 CU man with beard A few days ago, she mentioned a strange guy following her. I said, I’d take care of it. But due to the harvests and imminent monsoons, I was spending day and night in the fields. I couldn’t help her.
35.37 Newspaper rostrum In both cases the men were acquitted. The judge ruled that members of higher castes don’t force women of lower castes to have sex. The press made the cases infamous. Women's rights activists demonstrated and so the supreme court took up the case. This time the men were sentenced. But without this kind of pressure, many women remain mute, afraid of disgracing their family
36.12 Exterior Police station At one of the city's crime units more and more women are filing complaints to the police. But whilst only a quarter of the population is the upper caste, they have all the power. Under the old feudal structure, the rape of women was considered the right of the landowner, and this kind of violence against women is still routine But not everyone is talking about a new wave of crime against women.
36.42 Group of women The police commissioner here denies there’s been a boom in abuse.
36.52 WS police commissioner Statement T.N. Mohan Deputy police commissioner If we compare the statistics in the last few years, ’94, ’95 and ’96 violence against women has risen only slightly. Perhaps one per cent although the problem still persists. This is partly due to a more effective police and judicial system.
37.21 Exterior building & sign However, there are refuges full of women who have fled violence. This one was founded by the women of Rajasthan University. Abused women can stay here and as well as being cared for they can get free legal advice. For some, this is their last hope, as the stigma of divorce or widowhood means they continue to be abused for having disgraced the family honour.
37.56 MS woman Statement Indu Mathur Professor - Rajasthan University“Where will they stay? Their parents don’t want them, their husbands don’t care about them - quite the opposite. They’re here because violence reigns at home. Women's houses are important because women have nowhere else to go.”
38.19 Bucket in yard That’s the sad truth for this young widow. Her alcoholic husband assaulted her for many years until his death. Her parents didn’t want her back and even her brother shunned her.
38.29 MCU girl hidden by shawl Statement Widow, 28 years old My brother ill-treated me, not giving me help – clothes or any food. Treating my children like bad dogs, not sending them to school. I wanted help, that’s why I came here.
39.02 LS family on terrace After a bad experience of marriage many women are understandably reluctant to remarry even if it means social acceptance.
39.12 MCU old woman Statement Soni Dabla, widowIt would be better if I could live with one of my sons, but they’re all dead. My nephew lets me live with him. They give me food and a place to sleep. If I didn’t have that I would go hungry and have to beg in the village
39.36 WS family Kokula Dabla has a son. Without him, her life would be meaningless. Despite the fact that women are abused by men, they still consider men more important than their own sex, and turn to men to look after them.
39.52 MS woman holding baby Statement Kokula Dabla, farmer Girls marry and then they belong to another family. Our sons look after us when we’re old, and care for us after death - at our cremation.
40.05 LS old couple Once a woman has borne a son and after the death of her husband, she's fulfilled her role in life. She may even take her own life.
40.18 MS man Statement Swarmi Agnivesh parliamentary delegate and Hindu priest“Without a husband she has no life. And a husband however wicked he might be, has to be worshiped as next to God. Certain incidents take place because of this notion as part of the denial of equity and social justice for women".
40.53 Tilt down to elephant Vrindavan is a city of temples. The holy Krishna city stands two hours by road from the capital, Delhi. The temple is dedicated to Krishna and his beloved Radha, the wife of a simple cowherd.
41.11 Ritual dancing Thousands of devotees make a pilgrimage here to sing, dance and pay homage to Lord Krishna.
41.27 Train of women It's also a special place for widows. With no where else to go, around 4,000 of them have found some sort of refuge here. They gather together in the mornings and evenings to sing.
41.45 CU face To get a little food or money they sing for hours on end.
41.55 MCU man Statement Kapildeu UpadhyayBalaji Krishna AshramAccording to the scriptures the holy Krishna was born and brought up here. This is a religious place. The widows come here to pay homage and dedicate the rest of their lives to him.
42.14 Woman working Many women belong to one of the various Hindu sects, like the Krishna cult. But in reality widows come here not just because of Krishna but also because they can't go anywhere else. All have been rejected by their families and society. They'll live here in grinding poverty for the rest of their lives. Treated badly by landlords they pay a fortune for the tiniest cramped space.
42.52 MCU woman Statement Ampo Devi, widowIt’s sad. I have six daughters. If I had a son then I could live with him until the end of my life.
42.58 MCU woman crying Statement Udro Ghoshwidow“I’ve been here since my husband died 22 years ago. Without a husband a woman doesn’t count anymore. I don’t have any children, no property. The only thing I’ve still got is begging and singing.”
43.14 Woman in food queue As India moves into the next century she will carry with her the hopes and aspirations of over a billion people. Supporting such a vast population will be harder than ever.And so she faces a dilemma, child labour and the enslavement of women should have no place in the 21st century. But in India they form the economic and social fabric of society.If India is to progress as a modern state she needs to find a new model, which recognises the rights of everyone. Otherwise for many it's a bleak future with little hope of change.
44.11 ENDS
Report: Marion Mayer-Hohdahl
Camera: Shailesh Seth
VT editor: Tanya rosenberg
AKM:
Music for Meditation - Composer Vanraj Bhatia
M 93026 Stereo Cassette
Nr. 2 Dharana - 53 seconds
Nr 3 Dhyana - 28 seconds
Ravi Shankar in Celebration Highlights
Angel
72435 55617
Nr. 3 2nd movement Sitar Concerto Nr 1 - 38 seconds
Nr. 1 Dhun Kafi - 57 seconds
Nr. 8 Shanti Mantra - 1.10"
Nr.2 Supaney Mein Aye - 1.42"
Born to Bondage
41 minutes
TC Vision VO IV
3.10 Rural setting This is rural India and a scene from a play is being performed. These actors are part of government propaganda to outlaw an event which happens every day in villages across the country.
3.26 Throws baby on ground Baby girls suffer a fate once thought consigned to the past. They're killed because their parents only wanted a son.
TITLE: BORN TO BONDAGE
3.57 Woman working in room For generations women have been treated like second class citizens propelled into a lifetime of subservience and hardship.
4.07 CU girl's face At a young age girls like Pasupathy have to work in dingy conditions. Child labour is still legal in India. For every 1'000 boxes, she earns just 25 cents
4.25 MS girl's face Pasupathy, 11 yearsI don’t miss school very much. Everyone here has to work. We need the money.
4.33 WS fields After work Pasupathy helps her mother in the fields. Like most girls she has little chance of an education. Her father's a farmer and it was clear which of his children should go to school.
4.44 WS father StatementShunmulgavel RakkammalfarmerMy son goes to school. My daughter has to work. I can’t send them all to school - it’s free but I don’t have the money for school books and pencils.
5.045.24 WS school yard Most of the country’s 115 million working children are girls. Widespread poverty means families need to send their children to work. The state has tried to reverse this trend but without funds they have little chance of success although some schools are up and running Bhup Singh YadavOrganisation agianst bonded labourWe run schools particularly for children who are in bonded labour. They should have a chance. For every child that comes to school we give them a kilo of grain a day worth 5 rupees.
5.42 Girl walking It's only a small amount but for Santosh Kumani it's something to take home to her parents. She’s one of the lucky girls who go to school but three hours before it starts, she helps her mother and sisters clean bulb fittings.
6.02 Girls working It's a daily chore and for a 25 kilo sack of plugs they earn a pittance. Santosh resents the burden on her and her schoolwork.
6.13 CU girl Statement Santosh Kumani, 10 yearsI’m always so tired - in school too. I’m always working and I don’t have time for anything else, even homework. I’ve got no free time to play.
6.35 WS thatched building And it's the same story across India. This is a factory in the north and the workforce is made up of women and girls. They make glass bangles, which adorn the wrists of Indian women. In the nearby city of Firozabad around 50'000 children are making these at home. They'd be worse off without the money but they still feel fate has cheated them.
7.03 CU woman Statement Mina KumariWork never stops for us. We cook, clean the house, wash and make bangles. The men come home from work and are served. In my next life I want to be born as a boy.
7.17 Man at book shelf Swarmi Agnivesh is a priest and a politician. He feels uneasy about the state of women's rights and campaigns against injustice. Many of his followers consider him a saint.
7.36 CU man Swarmi AgniveshParliamentary delegate and Hindu priestSuccessive governments have acted very carelessly. They’ve abused their constitutional mandate and responsibilities. As a result we have 135 million children that don’t go to school. Sixty-five million child bonded labourers. It's a very depressing situation. As long as these children don’t get a good quality relevant full time education - at least until they’re 14 years old, with skills training, there's no hope of any break through in the vicious cycle of poverty, unemployment, child labour and population growth etc.
8.21 Girls on street The last Indian census in 1991 recorded a population of over 900 million people. Sometime around the millenium the population will excede 1 billion. Many will survive by begging, scavenging through rubbish for food or wood to burn. Most girls will pass on the cycle of illiteracy for future generations. At the beginning of the next century every second illiterate person in the world will be Indian, yet the government will spend millions on developing nuclear arms.
9.04 WS crowd gathering But there are some in high office who are trying to change things. As a Brahmin, Kamal Kishore belongs to the highest caste in India. The caste system divides Indian society into rich and poor, with no chance of escape. Kamal rejects the caste system as exploitation and subservience.
9.24 MCU man Statement Kamal Kishore JKSMS - street children'sOrganisationThe Brahmins only care about themselves. One is born into a caste and can’t do anything about it. In Hindu mythology, poverty and exploitation result from actions in an earlier life. The Brahmins call it the will of God.
9.43 WS crowd walking The UN’s children's agency UNICEF has been active in India for 50 years. It's director, Carol Bellamy is touring villages to check on local projects funded by the organisation.
9.55 MS two woman She also recognises there are major issues in India concerning women's rights but strongly identifies education as the key to change.
10.11 MCU woman Statement Carol Bellamy UNICEF executive director I think one of the best kinds of things that can happen to the community generally is if girls are able to get an education, just a primary school education then they're more likely to take care of themselves - They're more likely to have healthy children. They'll understand the importance of nutrition both for the boy and the girl so it so it has implications for women being treated as lesser human beings.
10.44 Women in doorway But if it's not poverty or the caste system hindering girls then child marriages offer another obstacle. It's still customary in India for families to marry off their daughters at a young age. In most parts it's an economic necessity relieving the household of another mouth to feed. In some cases, the unfortunate girls can be married off whilst they are still toddlers.
11.12 MCU woman Kamla Panchalmother We married off many of our daughters when they were three years old. That’s the custom. I didn’t know it was forbidden. Now my daughter is staying with us until she's older.
11.26 MCU young woman Vimla Panchal, 14 years I would like to choose my own husband but that’s not possible. I can’t go to school. Everything is decided for me. I am promised
11.41 WS village setting Even though a father will have to supply a dowry or a sum of money with his daughter's marriage it means in the long term his family is less likely to suffer financial hardship
11.56 MCU turbaned man Statement Ramlal Berura, father I had three daughters and my brother had two. It was a bargain if we could marry them all together. It costs us less. Then people said we had to keep our daughters and send them to school
12.16 WS field But customs will remain as long as there's illiteracy and poverty. Almost half of India's population lives below the poverty line and the ranks of the poor are swelling at a rate of 10 million a year. Girls can expect to inherit jobs with a low income and no job security. Often they'll work the longest hours in the worst conditions while the opportunities for self employment are almost non existent.
12.52 MCU young woman Statement Tara Lal Ragar, workerI work from dawn to sunset. We earn about 1.5 dollars a day. At least we earn something otherwise there’s also most no work for us. We have a saying: The sand is our mother. We are born into sand and will die in sand
13.10 Child and bricks And many women don't live to see old age. Frequent and continuous pregnancies means a woman in her twenties is 40% more likely to die than a man. The pressure of combining work with household duties in marriage can also lead to a decline in health. The world bank is attempting to change this by funding new health services and promoting family planning but so far they've had limited success.
13.41 Interior house Until recently Prakshi was going to school, but now her parents are marrying her off. Her family succeeded in finding the money to pay for the wedding but she’s a reluctant bride.
13.56 MCU young woman Statement Prakshi Devi, bride I’m not happy. I’m too young to marry. I want to continue to school. I’m sad because I don’t have any choice.
14.11 Procession A typical wedding procession and a bumper pay-out for one half of the newly created family. Even though the giving of dowries is commonplace, it's actually illegal in India but court cases are rare so the tradition flourishes. The dowry can wreak financial havoc with parents of several daughters and while this wedding is a chance for one family to increase their wealth, for the other it could spell disaster.
14.55 Two women dancing For some, weddings offer a real chance to party.
15.05 MS bride and friends Prakshi is going to get a quick look at her future husband. This is the last time she’ll be together with her friends. The exact time of the wedding is determined by an astrologer, as is the suitability of her husband - who's from the same caste. Even in the cities young Indian men let their parents find them a bride. Cupid's arrow rarely has a chance to fly here.
15.30 Cooking Finally it's Praskshi's wedding day and over 1'500 guests have been invited. Her parents have paid well and have borrowed heavily for the privilege of offloading their daughter. Even for the poor, a wedding is always matter of pride and standing.
15.57 WS room of gifts The gifts are usually given when the young couple are engaged. The bridegroom's family receive clothing, jewellery and saris as well as TV's and video recorders, all part of India's new consumerism. Strange items considering the village doesn't even have electricity.
16.27 Groom on horse Indian weddings at this level of caste are extremely lavish and ornate with no expense spared. The dowry can often continue to be haggled over even as the wedding procession winds its way through the village. If the bride’s had a previous boyfriend then the groom is seen as her salvation and his family can demand even more money.
17.10 Couple facing camera If the newlyweds look a little estranged, it’s because their marriage was arranged with business and status in mind. The bride will spend a last night at home with her parents. Tomorrow she fulfils her destiny as a married Indian woman, to become her husband ‘s slave.
17.27 WS front yard This is the groom's family and they're preparing themselves for the arrival of Prakshi who’ll have to fit in with the family structure and routine. She'll now belong to them and be required to work in her mother-in-law's kitchen. As the bride and newest family member she'll also get the worst jobs.
17.56 MS woman Statement Vimala Devi mother-in-law My daughter-in-law has to help me. She has to do the washing, prepare the food and keep the house clean - she has to manage all the housework
18.10 Car arriving From now on Prakshi will have to care for both her husband and his family. They'll decide if she can continue at school, or if she has to start work.
18.25 Groom emerging Young Indian women have little alternative but to follow these customs. After the birth of a son a woman's status improves and her role is secured but a woman without family ties in India cannot survive. If she divorces her husband, her return home brings shame on the family and she is cast out.
19.03 CU bride Prakshi like all wives is supposed to consider her husband a god, according to the scriptures.
19.18 WS field and workers If it's not the husband then it's the father who gets respect. With marriage, a woman's subservience is transferred from her father to her husband. As a lowly farmer, Prakshi’s father had to sell land and take out a loan to pay for her wedding. The loan is a great burden for the remaining household members. Prakshi’s father estimates it will take them five years to repay the debt.
19.57 Family and photos Although marriage is seen as a great institution within Indian society it brings mixed blessings for the fathers of daughters.
20.12 MS father Statement Satya Marain Sharma father If I’d only had sons I’d be happier. Daughters are only part of the family for a few years. They leave and also you have to pay out a lot of money for them. As well as that, we’ve got less help in the house. It’s the opposite for boys. It’s much better to have sons.
20.34 Children entering yard Prakshi can no longer see visitors. And as a young wife, she cannot leave the home of her-in-laws without a chaperone. In the first few years of marriage, the bride is only allowed to speak to strangers in the presence of her family.
20.53 LS woman with plate But marriage can be a one-way ticket to domestic abuse. Radha Sharma was sexually abused by her alcoholic husband who was continually demanding more dowry from her family. After years of suffering she finally left him after he tried to kill her. She found refuge with her older brother and his family. Throughout India thousands of women are raped, humiliated and beaten.
21.28 Woman leaving yard And although women like Radha are often the innocent victims, in the eyes of Indian society she's failed and brought shame on her family.
21.40 MCU woman Statement Radha Sharma divorcéeEven in my village many women are abused by husbands. Life is worth nothing for divorced women. Even my brother disapproves as he feeds me. That’s no life.
22.04 Soldiers Thousands of women don’t survive marriage. If their dowry's aren't large enough, they're sometimes killed by their husbands and his family. The man is then free to marry again and demand a new dowry. Most of these murders are classified as ‘accidents’ or suicides.
22.24 CU burnt post Here the scorched ground and charred remains are all that's left of a woman who was burned to death by her husband. The story was that her clothes caught fire while she was cooking. Government figures suggest that throughout India a woman dies violently every 100 minutes but the real figure is undoubtedly much higher.
22.46 MCU man Statement Swarmi Agnivesh parliamentary delegate and Hindu priest“We find that in the name of dowry Women are tortured. The bride is sometimes starved and beaten up to bring more and more consumer durables and when she vocalises her helplessness she's sometimes burnt to death, literally burnt alive. There are hundreds of thousands of such cases in India and the number is increasing.”
23.19 Pregnant woman Sometimes woman are killed by their husbands because they failed to bear a son. A son means a chance of economic stability and the opportunity to be looked after in old age. This explains why India is one of the few countries in the world to have less women than men. In recent years, since it's been possible to determine the sex of children by ultra-scan, female foetuses have been routinely aborted. At the beginning of 1996, a law was brought into force, banning the determining of a child’s sex before birth. Ultra-scan labs used to advertise with slogans like ‘Rather 500 rupees today than a 100 times that tomorrow for dowries'. Now scans are only allowed if a medical problem is suspected. But in a developing country like India, families find a way of bypassing the law.
24.43 Crowded clinic For the poorest in society who can't afford ultra-scans there are clinics like this one which offer abortions at a cut price. It's a desperate act which some will encounter several times but in their eyes it's preferable to the infanticide of their baby girls. Even if girls survive abortion or being killed at birth, less access to scant resources means that infant girls are less likely to survive. Whilst contraception is being used more and more widely, according to the National Commission for Women, there are over 6 million abortions of female foetuses every year in India. After giving birth to a boy many women get sterilised to prevent them having a daughter.
25.38 MCU man Statement Swarmi AgniveshParlimentary Delegate and Hindu Priest It has been found out in a Bombay clinic. When Investigations were carried out. In one year there were 8,000 abortions. But the tragic part of it was out of 8,000, 7999 of them came out to be female foetuses. That shows the type of havoc.
26.10 Nurse carrying baby The last census in 1991 revealed the increase in the birth of boys over girls. In states like Rajasthan for every 1,000 boys born there are 870 girls. This is a reversal of the worldwide trend, where 106 girls are usually born to every 100 boys.
26.33 Mother and children For women with an illegitimate child or who's marriage has ended, life on the streets is their only option. Their poor status in society means they'll too have to scavenge rubbish to survive. Such is the shortage of food, that their daughters must help with the sorting and gathering. As well as being exposed to violence or rape, life under these conditions is extremely hard.
27.12 MCU old woman Statement UdyaSanghirag collectorI start before sunrise. I make food for the family, carry water, then collect rubbish. This is no life. Hopefully my grandchildren will be richer, go to school. Here women work themselves to death
27.27 WS shanty town Thirty percent of Jaipur's population live in the slums. Here there’s no clean water, toilets or electricity.
27.43 Group young children Skin diseases, bronchitis and malnourishment are rife. Families pay 80 cents to live here which is almost half their daily wage. All these residents belong to thelower caste, the so called untouchables. They refer to themselves as Dalits or the trampled upon
27.58 Most of the men are unemployed and gamble away the little money they have. Many of the women are prostitutes which earns them more than collecting rags and rubbish. Mahatma Gandhi fought to improve the untouchables position in society - without much success.
28.28 Profile woman Kumkum Sharma is a social worker and is trying to help the young women on the streets.
28.35 MCU woman Statement Kumkum Sharmasocial workerThe women don’t want to collect rags. They have to do it. The men gamble the money or borrow it, then the women have to pay it back. Many prostitute themselves otherwise they’ll never escape their financial dependence.
28.57 street Some girls end up in red light districts like this one where sex costs as little as a bottle of beer. They’re nearly all untouchables and so aren’t allowed to mingle with higher ranking castes except when they’re servicing clients through sex. Many women have been sold to pimps by their families who couldn't afford their dowries. Mistreatment and diseases like Aids means they’ll die young.
29.24 MCU woman Statement prostituteIf I had a daughter, I wouldn’t like it if she ended up here. It’s terrible.
29.32 MCU woman Statement prostituteI come from a poor family. They couldn’t pay for a dowry. That’s why I’m here.
29.40 street Prostitution only highlights the problems facing India's women. These girls are treated as outcasts, condemned by society and their families, yet used by men from all castes.
29.56 Entering rooms The exploitation of women though the generations has become ingrained, even within the family.
30.08 MCU doctor Statement Smarajit JanadoctorProstitutes won’t be taken back by their families. When they’re old, they die alone. And, no one cares about them. That’s the story for older people in the sex business.
30.30 WS crowds dancing Only once a year can women let their hair down - during the Holi festival in March. Holi used to be a fertility festival. Today, it’s one of the most important Hindu celebrations with seven days of festivities. It’s a time to get merry and even the men join in.
31.00 LS temple India’s six great religions have numerous divinities; saints, prophets or gurus which are all worshipped. Although Indians have the greatest number of holidays this one brings the whole country to a standstill, as crowds of both sexes pour onto the streets and smear each other with powder.
31.27 CU man being hit with sticks And it’s here that India’s downtrodden women exact a brief revenge, symbolically at least. They queue up to give an unlucky man a good hiding. Since the nationalistic BJP party came to power, Hinduism has taken on a fundamentalist dimension drawing contrasts with Muslim society. Now women are more discriminated against than before.
32.00 Burning fire In the evening huge fires are lit to celebrate the legend of a King's son who apparently rose from the flames unhurt.
32.15 Burning fire And as if by chance a young man suddenly jumps out from the fire. According to this legend boys are like rays of light from heaven while girls are evil and are left to burn.
32.29 Exterior cinema Few Indian woman stand up for their rights, but one has dared to defend herself, Phoolan Devi. The film Bandit Queen portrays her life story. She belonged to a lowly caste of fishermen and was married off at 11 to a much older man. She was then sexually abused and raped by several higher caste men.
32.54 Excerpt film She became a outlaw and led a gang which killed policemen and blackmailed large landowners.
33.05 Woman and press Later, Phoolan Devi was arrested and sentenced to 12 years in jail for multiple murder. The lower castes consider her a heroine, a symbol of justice. They want to elect her to parliament. She’s preparing for her campaign and her main theme is the exploitation of women.
33.34 Archive photo Phoolan Devi claims that women have no choice but to take revenge on men. In 1981, she and her gang shot the 22 men who had raped her, listed here. She remains defiant and calls oppressed women to arms.
33.48 MCU woman Statement Phoolan Devi former banditI belong to the untouchables. The upper castes are ruled by men and they torture the women. Women are people and not like bedclothes that the man can just use and throw away. If women in India don’t finally get their rights, then I’m sure that soon all the girls and women will get hold of weapons and become like Phoolan Devi, who fought against big land owners
34.16 LS woman: yellow shall Bhanwari Devi also had the courage to fight back. She’s a social worker from a low caste, and heard about the plans for an illegal marriage between a one year-old girl and a three year-old boy. She informed the authorities and the marriage was stopped.
34.40 MS woman Statement Bhanwari Devi social workerAfterwards five men came. They were furious with me because I’d told the authorities about the child marriage. They threw me on the floor. One held my hands and two others raped me. My husband thrashed them.
34.56 Girl with baby This 15 year-old girl was also raped by men of a higher caste. She became pregnant and her father reported them to the police. She kept the baby – unable to afford an abortion or too ashamed to tell anyone about her pregnancy. Her father describes how the tragedy came about.
35.17 CU man with beard A few days ago, she mentioned a strange guy following her. I said, I’d take care of it. But due to the harvests and imminent monsoons, I was spending day and night in the fields. I couldn’t help her.
35.37 Newspaper rostrum In both cases the men were acquitted. The judge ruled that members of higher castes don’t force women of lower castes to have sex. The press made the cases infamous. Women's rights activists demonstrated and so the supreme court took up the case. This time the men were sentenced. But without this kind of pressure, many women remain mute, afraid of disgracing their family
36.12 Exterior Police station At one of the city's crime units more and more women are filing complaints to the police. But whilst only a quarter of the population is the upper caste, they have all the power. Under the old feudal structure, the rape of women was considered the right of the landowner, and this kind of violence against women is still routine But not everyone is talking about a new wave of crime against women.
36.42 Group of women The police commissioner here denies there’s been a boom in abuse.
36.52 WS police commissioner Statement T.N. Mohan Deputy police commissioner If we compare the statistics in the last few years, ’94, ’95 and ’96 violence against women has risen only slightly. Perhaps one per cent although the problem still persists. This is partly due to a more effective police and judicial system.
37.21 Exterior building & sign However, there are refuges full of women who have fled violence. This one was founded by the women of Rajasthan University. Abused women can stay here and as well as being cared for they can get free legal advice. For some, this is their last hope, as the stigma of divorce or widowhood means they continue to be abused for having disgraced the family honour.
37.56 MS woman Statement Indu Mathur Professor - Rajasthan University“Where will they stay? Their parents don’t want them, their husbands don’t care about them - quite the opposite. They’re here because violence reigns at home. Women's houses are important because women have nowhere else to go.”
38.19 Bucket in yard That’s the sad truth for this young widow. Her alcoholic husband assaulted her for many years until his death. Her parents didn’t want her back and even her brother shunned her.
38.29 MCU girl hidden by shawl Statement Widow, 28 years old My brother ill-treated me, not giving me help – clothes or any food. Treating my children like bad dogs, not sending them to school. I wanted help, that’s why I came here.
39.02 LS family on terrace After a bad experience of marriage many women are understandably reluctant to remarry even if it means social acceptance.
39.12 MCU old woman Statement Soni Dabla, widowIt would be better if I could live with one of my sons, but they’re all dead. My nephew lets me live with him. They give me food and a place to sleep. If I didn’t have that I would go hungry and have to beg in the village
39.36 WS family Kokula Dabla has a son. Without him, her life would be meaningless. Despite the fact that women are abused by men, they still consider men more important than their own sex, and turn to men to look after them.
39.52 MS woman holding baby Statement Kokula Dabla, farmer Girls marry and then they belong to another family. Our sons look after us when we’re old, and care for us after death - at our cremation.
40.05 LS old couple Once a woman has borne a son and after the death of her husband, she's fulfilled her role in life. She may even take her own life.
40.18 MS man Statement Swarmi Agnivesh parliamentary delegate and Hindu priest“Without a husband she has no life. And a husband however wicked he might be, has to be worshiped as next to God. Certain incidents take place because of this notion as part of the denial of equity and social justice for women".
40.53 Tilt down to elephant Vrindavan is a city of temples. The holy Krishna city stands two hours by road from the capital, Delhi. The temple is dedicated to Krishna and his beloved Radha, the wife of a simple cowherd.
41.11 Ritual dancing Thousands of devotees make a pilgrimage here to sing, dance and pay homage to Lord Krishna.
41.27 Train of women It's also a special place for widows. With no where else to go, around 4,000 of them have found some sort of refuge here. They gather together in the mornings and evenings to sing.
41.45 CU face To get a little food or money they sing for hours on end.
41.55 MCU man Statement Kapildeu UpadhyayBalaji Krishna AshramAccording to the scriptures the holy Krishna was born and brought up here. This is a religious place. The widows come here to pay homage and dedicate the rest of their lives to him.
42.14 Woman working Many women belong to one of the various Hindu sects, like the Krishna cult. But in reality widows come here not just because of Krishna but also because they can't go anywhere else. All have been rejected by their families and society. They'll live here in grinding poverty for the rest of their lives. Treated badly by landlords they pay a fortune for the tiniest cramped space.
42.52 MCU woman Statement Ampo Devi, widowIt’s sad. I have six daughters. If I had a son then I could live with him until the end of my life.
42.58 MCU woman crying Statement Udro Ghoshwidow“I’ve been here since my husband died 22 years ago. Without a husband a woman doesn’t count anymore. I don’t have any children, no property. The only thing I’ve still got is begging and singing.”
43.14 Woman in food queue As India moves into the next century she will carry with her the hopes and aspirations of over a billion people. Supporting such a vast population will be harder than ever.And so she faces a dilemma, child labour and the enslavement of women should have no place in the 21st century. But in India they form the economic and social fabric of society.If India is to progress as a modern state she needs to find a new model, which recognises the rights of everyone. Otherwise for many it's a bleak future with little hope of change.
44.11 ENDS
Report: Marion Mayer-Hohdahl
Camera: Shailesh Seth
VT editor: Tanya rosenberg
AKM:
Music for Meditation - Composer Vanraj Bhatia
M 93026 Stereo Cassette
Nr. 2 Dharana - 53 seconds
Nr 3 Dhyana - 28 seconds
Ravi Shankar in Celebration Highlights
Angel
72435 55617
Nr. 3 2nd movement Sitar Concerto Nr 1 - 38 seconds
Nr. 1 Dhun Kafi - 57 seconds
Nr. 8 Shanti Mantra - 1.10"
Nr.2 Supaney Mein Aye - 1.42"