Last week, an official of Masal gram panchayat of the tribal taluka of Surgana in Nashik district passed away at a private hospital in Beed during treatment. Within hours, the message of his last rites was circulated among the villagers. As it informed the fellow villagers of his demise, it also gave one key message.
“In consonance with the idea of maintaining the dignity of our women, it was decided that the evil tradition of wiping away of vermillion, removal of bangles, toe rings and mangalsutra (akin to thaali worn by married women), will not be followed,” the message said about the family’s decision to not let the widow of the official face the social humiliation.
“We are sad about his unfortunate demise, but this is the first response to our effort in stopping the evil traditions which humiliate our women,” the message read further.
For centuries now, the tradition of publicly removing the ornaments considered to be the symbols of marriage for a woman has been prevalent in Maharashtra. This includes the villagers coming together and gathering around the widowed woman to strip her off her bindi, her necklace, her toe rings, her bangles. The tradition is humiliating for the widows who are made to socially realise the lack of their status in the society due to the demise of their husbands. While it is not openly followed in many urban areas anymore, it is still a common practice in the rural areas.
