Swearing Off Misogyny
Reader's Digest India|June 2022
How one man is fighting patriarchal norms by attacking an often overlooked symptom-the normalization of sexist profanity
Naorem Anuja
Swearing Off Misogyny

MONIKA BAZZAD WAS on her weekly video call with her father, a policeman from Haryana, when he broke out yet again into a misogynist slur. He'd had a bad day at work and thought little about the impact of his language on his daughter, who flinched at the word.

"I asked him why he chose to use words like that. Don't you know what they mean?" she said. Challenged by his 23-year-old daughter, and unable to defend his casual use of sexist profanity, he handed the phone to his wife and walked away. That was a year ago, and now Monika proclaims her home a gaali bandh ghar (A profanity-free home).

Monika is one of the many young women who have joined the Gaali Bandh Ghar Abhiyan (Stop the Swearing campaign), a crusade aimed against the misogyny that abounds in swear words. Started by 39-year-old social activist Sunil Jaglan in 2014, while he was Gram Pradhan of Bibipur, Haryana, the campaign began as a response to the easy use of abusive language he found rampant within his village. "In our panchayat meetings, I noticed that whether men talked about problems facing the village, or made wisecracks, they would regularly slip in cuss words-most of which would invariably be the kind that shamed women or their anatomy."

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM READER'S DIGEST INDIAView all
From the King's Table to Street Food: A Food History of Delhi
Reader's Digest India

From the King's Table to Street Food: A Food History of Delhi

Pushpesh Pant, one of India’s pre-eminent food writers, is back with a comprehensive food history of the capital.

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
Who Wants Coffee?
Reader's Digest India

Who Wants Coffee?

It’s bitter—but beloved around the world

time-read
2 mins  |
October 2024
Prevent The Pain Of Shingles
Reader's Digest India

Prevent The Pain Of Shingles

You don't have to suffer, as long as you take two important steps

time-read
3 mins  |
October 2024
The Best And Worst Diets For Your Heart
Reader's Digest India

The Best And Worst Diets For Your Heart

Dozens of diets are touted as ‘best’, but it’s easy to lose track of the fact that healthy eating needs to be about overall wellness, not just weight loss.

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
ME & MY SHELF
Reader's Digest India

ME & MY SHELF

Journalist Sopan Joshi has worked in a science and environment framework for nearly three decades. His book Mangifera indica: A Biography of the Mango (Aleph Book Company) synthesizes the sensory appeal of India's favourite fruit with its elaborate cultural roots and natural history. He writes in English and Hindi.

time-read
3 mins  |
October 2024
SWITCHED
Reader's Digest India

SWITCHED

In 1962, nurses at a small Canadian hospital sent home two women with the wrong babies. Then, 50 years later, their children discovered the shocking mistake.

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
ECHOES OF THE PAST
Reader's Digest India

ECHOES OF THE PAST

A VISIT TO THE ANCIENT BARABAR CAVES IN BIHAR REVEALS A SURPRISING CONNECTION TO A LITERARY CLASSIC

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024
Fathers of the Bride
Reader's Digest India

Fathers of the Bride

A young woman finds a unique way to honour the many men who helped her survive her childhood

time-read
8 mins  |
October 2024
Fiction's Foresight
Reader's Digest India

Fiction's Foresight

British-Bangladeshi author Manzu Islam's works reveal startling parallels to recent political upheavals in Bangladesh, begging the question: Besides helping us make sense of our world, can stories also offer a glimpse into the future?

time-read
7 mins  |
October 2024
It Happens ONLY IN INDIA
Reader's Digest India

It Happens ONLY IN INDIA

The Divine Defence Picture this: A tractor in Rajasthan‘s Banswara district,a group of loan agents closing in to seize it and the defaulting farmer and his family standing by.

time-read
2 mins  |
October 2024