Ayali – A story of Women Empowerment

Feminism deals with the advocacy of women rights based on the equality of the
sexes. It is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to
define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the
sexes. Although largely originating in the West, feminism, is manifested
worldwide and is represented by various institutions committed by activity on
behalf of women’s rights and interest. Mary Wolf stone Craft’s, ‘On the
Vindication of rights of women’ is the first work that stands as a stepping stone
of the feminism movement. Ayali directed by Muthu Kumar and produced by S.
Kushmavathi’s Estrella Stories is the first Tamil series to deal with the taboo of
menstruation. Many households, no matter how modern they claim to be, they
still practice some form of menstrual segregation. Even educated and financially
independent women are forced to follow some customs like sleeping on the
floor, stay in separate rooms, not entering pooja room etc during their periods.
This story also deals with the practice of marrying off underage girls as soon as
they hit puberty.
The series is set in 1990s, in a small fictional village, in Pudukkottai district,
Tamil Nadu. It is a tale that moves around a ninth-grade girl named Tamizh,
who has dreams of becoming a doctor. But in her village no girl has even made
it to class 10, it is because the girls are married off as soon as they get their first
periods. Ayali starts off by setting up a village myth, surrounding the curse of a
goddess i.e., a young girl eloped with a man from a neighbouring village 500
years ago, causing the villagers to suffer from the wrath of their deity, Ayali.
Fearing the curse, the girls in the village are married off and restricted from
entering the temple as penance as soon as they hit puberty.
The protagonist of the story Tamizh is seen as the voice of the women in their
village. She is bold, determined, and confident by nature. She questions the
superstitious beliefs, gender equality and patriarchal practices in the village.
One by one all her friends drop out from school and married off immediately
after they attain puberty. The sufferings of these girls bring fear in Tamizh.
Finally, the dreadful day comes and Tamizh attains puberty. She figures out that
her parents did not find it and decides to hide the fact that she has attained
puberty. But, at a certain stage her mother discovers the truth, however, Tamizh
convinces her by
blackmailing her and somehow her mother accepts to support her, and she
continues going school. Tamizh’s family faces lot of humiliations from the
villagers as they thought that she did not attain her puberty at the right age.
They also went to extent of comparing her with an old lady who did not attain
puberty. Despite all this Tamizh was very determined in studying and in the end,
she completes her 10th grade with 485 marks. After this phase we can see a
really matured girl who fights for the empowerment of all other girls in their
village. She goes to an extent of revealing the truth (she attained puberty two
years back) to the people and trying to convince them. But this backfires on her
and she was forced to marry. Her mother, along with few other women in the
village tries to help her in eloping but she refuses it and comes back. Her speech
in front of the women enlightened them and all the women in the village reaches
the Ayali temple wherein they protest the men for their empowerment. The story
ends in 21st Century wherein all the women and men from the village goes to far
away places for studying and working, also we can see a rural village turned
into semi-urban village in the end of the series.
Ayali can be seen as a feminist story in various aspects. It tells the story of how
patriarchy is maintained through superstitious practices in the name of religious
beliefs. Right from the beginning of the story the series questions many of the
superstitious beliefs, domination and subjugation of women, patriarchal and
religious norms and double marginalisation that are still prevailing in our
country. There is a scene when Tamizh’s friend Mythili angrily shouts, ‘wait
until you attain puberty, you’ll know who your father really is.’ The force of the
dialogue and the way she delivers it, speaks volumes on how the patriarchal
figures can break down a younger girl. How at the dictate of biology, girls and
women are simultaneously sexualised and stripped of power. The is another
scene towards the end of the series wherein all the women protest the men of
their family. Here, director Muthu Kumar writes some ferocious dialogues like
‘Embarrassing you all is not a difficult task. You will die of dishonour if a
woman questions your masculinity,’ ‘Then why the hell you have placed the
village’s honour on us?’ ‘Why the hell you are searching your village’s honour
between our legs?’. These dialogues proves that one cannot supress someone for
a long time and one day they might burst aggressively. This also shows the state
of double marginalisation that exists in the village.
The most striking scene in the series is the moment when Tamizh enters the
Ayali temple after her first periods and during her periods. In Hindu culture a
girl who attains her puberty for the first time is seen as a god and then they ask
her not to indulge in any auspicious practices and prayers during her periods.
Tamizh breaks this belief by entering in to the temple during her periods. The
next is when she removes the mangal sutra and throws it on Sakthivel when he
ties it without her concern. This is an attack on the ‘thaali sentiment’ in which
the mangal sutra is seen as a byword for the ultimate gift a man can give a
woman, no matter what coercive or ludicrous means are used to tie it around her
neck. These two scenes bring a light on ever existing superstitious beliefs
through which men are still subjugating and dominating women. The most
important and prevalent aspect in the series is the right for education of women.
It is because of the education Tamizh could understand the existing false beliefs
and because of it she could fight for the other women in her village. Therefore,
it focuses on aspect of empowerment that begins with education.
However, in a society where women still must smuggle pads into their own
homes and period talk is still frowned upon in many families and even friends,
the series stands as a beginning of such conversation, and it also challenges the
beliefs of a rigid that uses women as scapegoats to run the patriarchy. Overall
Ayali does not only focus on the rural societies and male chauvinists but, this
series stands as an eye-opening one that questions various aspects of society
which are relevant in today’s world.