“Mother, mother! Why have you baked only four chapatis today? You very well know that brother alone eats four chapatis, what will I eat? He doesn’t even share” said Kusum while poking inside the box of bread in the kitchen.
“Hey, if you won’t take one meal of a day, you won’t die. There was no flour left so I couldn’t make more chapatis. In the evening, your Bapu will bring the flour, then you can have the food”, said her mother Sunita.
“Mother, I won’t die without eating food, but would my brother die if he eats less bread? He never gives his share of bread.” Kusum said angrily.
“Beware! Don’t say such words for your elder brother,” Sunita said threatening her.
“What kind of elder brother is he who does not get upset even after seeing his younger sister hungry? He is such a demon who even takes my bread from my plate”, Kusum said making an irritated face, and went outside the house slamming her feet.
Her elder brother Manoj heard all that his sister said about him. Without giving it heed, he sat down while his mother served him the food. He ate without thinking either about his mother or sister’s appetite.
Gradually, he too was becoming like his father who was the keeper of the house. He used to put women on the tip of the shoe and considered them to be the dust of his feet.
At night, Manoj told his father the things said by his sister and the result was that Sunita was brutally beaten.
Seeing all this every day, Kusum stopped complaining. But Sunita wanted a better life for her daughter. She wanted to do something for her.
One night, she told her husband, “My mother’s health is very bad. She is calling Kusum for help. You know that my sister-in-law also doesn’t remain very well. My mom was saying that when Kusum would be of age, she would look for a suitable groom for her and marry her off. So if you permit, I will send Kusum to her nani’s house”
Sunita knew that her husband would agree promptly to save the marriage expenses of his daughter. That’s why Sunita kept her point in such a manner.
She had already explained to Kusum that she would try and send Kusum to her maternal grandmother’s place where her maternal uncle would send her to school. Kusum did not want to leave her mother but she also knew that by staying there, she won’t be able to do anything for her mother.
The plan worked well. Sunita’s husband readily agreed. Kusum went to her grandmother’s place. She had a passion to do something great in her life, something with which she could prevent further exploitation of his mother and other women like his mother.
She wanted to do something for women and make them aware of their rights. She studied hard, burnt the midnight oil. She got the fruits of her hard work and fervour.
She finally made her name in the field of men and became an IPS officer. Till today there was no woman police officer in her entire village and district. She became the first IPS officer in her district. After becoming an IPS officer, she formed an organization of women lawyers and women social workers.
She also used to get information related to her house from time to time and she was informed about her brother’s marriage to Meena. She also got the news that Manoj harassed Meena a lot and had twice committed the crime of female foeticide.
Kusum met her sister-in-law Meena and told her about herself. With the women activists, Kusum explained to Meena that she could get rid of this harassment and also file a complaint against her husband.
Meena was very scared. So it was explained to her that she would never be alone – this women’s organization would always support her and would also help her in getting employment. After much persuasion, Meena courageously filed a complaint against her husband one day. Her complaint was acted upon immediately and Manoj was arrested.
The whole village was stunned by this decision of Meena. Kusum, as promised, helped Meena become self-reliant. By doing so, she kept the image of a golden future in front of the women of the whole village. Women who till date believed that it was their destiny to be beaten by their husbands, to be abused by them, and to do their Chakri, today these women were taking steps towards change.
Kusum along with social workers instilled confidence in the women of her village and told them about their rights and also explained that women are not toys in the hands of men. They also have the full right to live with dignity. Kusum’s mother Sunita also became an activist of this organization.
The Momma Clan 
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