by SYEDA HAMEED
Married to a magistrate knighted by the British, Sakinatul Fatima became part of the movement which would go on to dismantle colonial British rule
When Gandhi launched the Civil Disobedience movement, Lady Sakinatul Fatima discarded the purdah, bought a charkha for daily use and wore nothing but Khadi
Majaz, poet of revolution, gave a call in mid 20th century to young women
Hijab e fitna parvar khud utttha leti to achha ttha
Tu apne husn ko parda bana leti to achha ttha
Tere matthe pe ye aanchal bahaut hee khub hai lekin
Tu iss aanchal se ek Parcham bana leti to achha ttha
Had you lifted yourself your mischievous veil
And made of your beauty itself a veil
On your forehead your scarf is graceful indeed
Had you made it a banner how well it would be!
Women had begun to make a banner of their veils much before this poetic advice. Muslim women were already playing their part in India’s freedom movement in the late nineteenth century but their voices became louder in the first decade of the 20th century. There were many; Abadi Banu Begum known to the world as Bi Amman, mother of Mohammad Ali and Shaukat Ali, leaders of Khilafat Movement, close associates of Mahatma Gandhi; Rehana, daughter of Gandhi’s friend Abbas Tayabji who designed the tiranga jhanda as we know it today and Jahanara Shahnawaz who was elected first to Punjab Legislative Assembly then to Central Constituent Assembly of India. The three Fyzee sisters, Atiya, Zohra and Nazli of Bombay, whose passion for freedom was expressed in their struggle for women’s education. Sharifa Hamid Ali, also from the Tyabji clan, who drew up a model Nikahnama in the 1930s and was a nationalist to core. Shaista Ikramullah from Bengal, who was elected in 1946 to the Constituent Assembly, her fervour for Independence found in her writings. Then there were women who we know as writers but were passionate freedom fighters; Ismat Chughtai, Rasheed Jahan and many others.
Hindustan Times for more