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SHRED THE PATRIARCHY // INDIA 2024
 

India, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, stands as the world's most populous country. Yet female skaters can be counted on one hand. It is here that the second part of the Shred the Patriarchy project comes to life: portraying how, against prejudices and threats, some women have rebelled by balancing on a board and transforming skateboarding into a form of resistance against the patriarchy.

I traveled more than 5,300 km to meet them and see how skateboarding once again is the chosen way to break societal norms and smashing stereotypes that shackle the female gender in this country.

Despite the hollow rhetoric of “world’s largest democracy” and the progress made in recent years, there are still many challenges that women in India face today.

In most parts of the country, gender discrimination starts in the womb. The birth of a female child is often not welcomed, and if she manages to see the light of day, she will be discriminated against in most aspects of life such as education, health, safety, or participation in society.

Through the art of falling and getting back up, these women challenge stereotypes, fight marginalization, and reclaim public spaces in metropolises like Mumbai and New Delhi. Many have managed to avoid arranged marriages, while others have gained financial independence, and earn respect within their communities by skateboarding.

They dress in Western clothes but sometimes skate in sarees, they travel far and by themselves, and look you straight in the eye when they speak to you. It is with these simple yet revolutionary gestures that young Indian women make the patriarchal system tremble, reclaiming the freedom to imagine something different for themselves: to be a voice and no longer an echo.

In rural India, where untouchability, gender inequality, illiteracy, and alcoholism are rampant, skateboarding has transformed the reality of some women.

In the village of Janwaar, a skatepark has proven to be an empowering platform for the youth. It enables them to change their traditional mindset and build a better future for themselves and their country. Suitable skateparks are rare in India, but it’s in these places where one imagines a different society, regardless of caste and religious discrimination.

Asha Gond is one of the pioneers of this current that is continuing to make positive changes in the village since the creation of the park. She has skateboarded her way out of poverty by breaking the cycle of invisibility that afflicts tribal women.

With a seemingly simple gesture, Asha and the other female skaters of this story are peacefully defending their rights and claim them for themselves and the entire female community, not only in their country but worldwide.

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