The searing labour pain and she shrieked in agony while the babies crowned! 12 long hours of the harrowing rendition, and finally, Shakti gave birth to twin baby boys. Sweating and gasping for breath, she looked at the babies and their whimpers tugged at her heartstrings. She felt accomplished! Forced into surrogacy owing to poverty, she had resigned to her fate; a feeble smile appeared on her lips at the thought of giving birth to boys!
Married at 19 and mother of 3 girls by 25, Shakti was labeled barren for not being able to protect the so called “royal dynasty”. Her womb was cursed for bringing shame to her family by not producing a boy. Abandoned by husband and in-laws for the obvious, she had decided that no matter what, she will do everything possible to raise her daughters with dignity and respect and fight against patriarchy and the pervasive gender discrimination.
The Other Side:
Victorious moment called for time to rejoice! The grandparents heaved a sigh of relief, their smiles exhibiting an euphoric sense of achievement. The heirs of the family had come at last and it felt like a double bonanza, the missing Y chromosome was found eventually. Praying in silence with their eyes shut, they profusely thanked god for saving the lineage of the family. It was a remarkable day in their lives, the family name was saved when Shakti, the surrogate woman who agreed to rent her womb, appeared like a magical wand and had put an end to their ongoing miseries. Rama, the meek daughter in law, also felt at ease. Now, her hardships of going through unending abortions and the subsequent emotional grief will finally cease. Diya and Avni’s happiness also knew no bounds, now they knew, with the arrival of their saviors- twin brothers, no one would ridicule their mother Rama for giving birth to girls and curse them for being born as the unwanted gender!
The nauseating smell of the medicines at the hospital also could not conceal their jubilation, all of them were ecstatic but the reasons were different.
20 Years later:
India magazine featured Shakti as the face of Resilient and indefatigable India. Notwithstanding the societal oppression for being a mother of only girls, she firmly stood with her daughters in fulfilling their aspirations.