“She was the bravest and best military leaders of the rebels. A man among mutineers”, wrote Hugh Rose, the British military general, about Manikarnika aka ‘Chhabili’. These words of that British military general shows that even they acknowledged that Rani Laxmi Bai was an epitome of ‘Shakti’. So it’s high time we stop looking at the west when it comes to feminism. Instead, we should look up to Manikarnika for the real, Indian version of feminism.
Manikarnika, a brave Brahmin girl, who post-marriage got the name Rani Laxmi Bai, a Kshatriya queen, was the bravest of all the Indian daughters our motherland has ever given birth to. Rani proved why nature has given the supreme task of being the source of creation only to women.
Manu, said ‘Me Too’ way back in 1857. Though the vision was different, the circumstances were somewhat similar. The misogynists in East India Company under-estimated her, and started harassing her by attempting to usurp Jhansi.
Soon, they were left bleeding. Thanks to the super feminine-Manikarnika. They had thought that a widow would go to Kashi, but then history knows well that what happened. Her ‘Me Too’ is a symbol of bravery and not victimhood. Such was her aura that thousands of male soldiers did not even think twice before pledging their allegiance to her and Motherland. They were ready to die for their motherland under the leadership of Manikarnika. She led her troops from the front in the battlefield.
The Rani, usually dressed in royal style with all costly ornaments, became the wrath for enemies when she entered the battlefield with the turban on her head and armour all over her body. When it came to leadership, sacrifice, bravery, patriotism, perseverance and tactical brilliance, she left her male fellow countrymen far behind. This is the reason why Manikarnika was the real feminist because she is not one of those present-day pseudo-feminists who demand special privileges but when it comes to the performance of duty then they want special concessions.
Many feminists out there think that a woman taking care of her family is a symbol of conservative Indian tradition. But Rani proves them wrong. Her playful nature, probably due to which she was nicknamed ‘Chhabili’, depicts her feminine aspects. She performed all her duties as a wife by being proud of her husband, fulfilling the promises she made to him, being his strength when he felt dishonoured by the treatment meted out to him by the Company. She was also a great mother who had left no stone unturned to take the best care of her child whether she was in the Jhansi Fort, battlefield or anywhere else. She proved that for a female to be a ‘Shakti’, she need not abort her feminine aspects instead make them her strength because being feminine in itself makes her the source of creation which in turn makes her supreme.
It’s high time that present-day daughters of mother India begin looking up to Manikarnika for inspiration and take lessons of feminism from her. It’s high time that present-day sons of Mother India become a father like Moropant Tambe, a brother like Nana Saheb, a husband like Raja Gangadhar Newalkar and a friend like Tatya Tope so that millions of Manikarnika, Laxmi Bai, Manu & Chhabilis are nurtured in our country. Also, it’s high time that we accept that we have our own version of feminism that is real, progressive & traditional which goes way back to 1850s.