Today’s women have their own identity

Before, if parents discriminated among their children by not giving equal opportunity to their daughters, the same echoed through further generations. But these days this is not the case. Today, women have their own identity and cannot be written off anymore,” said author Ratna Vira. She was talking at a discussion on ‘Empowering women in our circle of influence’ organized by the FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) on Thursday.

The author of ‘Daughter by Court Order’ has received rave reviews and stormed the nation with her debut book which has been among the top ten best sellers of India in the last four months. In her book, she has explored the serious issues of discrimination against women, especially when it comes to property rights. The book dwells on the prevailing hypocrisy in society and how the upper echelons of the society deal with their problems.

Inspired and encouraged by words of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had praised her work in a letter, Ratna Vira announced the establishment of the Daughter by Court Order Forum for Women (DBCO Forum for Women). Monika Agarwal, chairperson of FLO, said, “India is still a patriarchal society, where the rules are different for daughters and for sons. And that’s where Ratna's book is bringing a change. It has become a metaphor, giving women the confidence of taking the first step, of speaking up, and changing the course of their lives and of the women around them.”