Citation

Bhattacharyya R, Singh S. GeoJournal 2018; 83(4): 757-774.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s10708-017-9800-0

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Geographies of disowned Indian widows are highly under-researched. This case study seeks to understand the lives of 21 of the many diverse widows across India. These 21 widows were driven out by their families, who sought refuge in the two Briddhha Ashrams (old-age hermitages) namely Rajkya and Birla, both located in the heritage city, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Drawing upon ethnographic research and building on 21 semi-structured interviews, the research aims to understand the lives of these widows in the two ashrams and their everyday coping strategies. The findings suggest that each woman has negotiated with 'widowhood' in order to build individual identities as 'self'. Using the threads of analysis, we urge for the passing of the draft Bill on widows' protection, welfare and maintenance prepared by Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak, the architect of sanitation charity, Sulabh International, who has adopted widows of Varanasi and Vrindavan by providing a dole of INR2000/month.

Language: en

Keywords

Ethnography; India; Semi-structured interviews; Social and cultural exclusion; Varanasi; Widowhood; Widows