In the last two decades not only in India but also all over the world significant changes occurred on different level. The ways of living, social relation and behavior have learnt new definitions. There has been a significant role of globalization to bring drastic changes in human life and society. We know that globalization has become an integral part of our day to day life. It has been shaping not only the economies of the near about 149 WTO’s member countries but also the life of millions of people. The first phase of the force of capitalist globalization (18thc to the Second World War) wished primarily to exploit the resource and existing market. For instance, the colonization of the Indian subcontinent has witnessed the export of primary goods from colony to the metropolis, construction of railways and modern laws in order to enhance further respective exploitation. But in the second phase the imperial capitalist forces have wished pre-eminently to exploit the human soul (being-ness of the human) and the culture of consumption in order to deepen further market and create new demands.
The idea of globalization should not be confined only to the economic growth. In a country like India
Historically the Indian women had not had any dignified life in the patriarchal society. They had been considered as consuming thing during the feudal age. In early 19th century our country witnessed many social reformist movements. Rajaram Mohan Roy and Ishwar Chand Vidya Sagar were few representatives who laid the movements forward. They launched struggle again the flawed social costumes, which allowed to burn women alive with the dead body of their husbands. In the later 19th century Jyotiba Phule, Rama Bai and V. M. Malabari advocated the women liberation. Their attempts to abolish the child marriages, unfair marriages and to access them equal education produced fruitful results. After independence our country has achieved tremendous success in different sphere of life. Number of women have emerged as leading personality and they are contributing their productive services to the society. Medha Patekar, Arundhati Rai and Zoya Hasan are some famous names among the leading Indian women of the contemporary India. Saniya Mirza and Mitali Raj have fame the country world over in the sports.
The women are playing key role in politics and economy. Soniya Gandhi, Rabari Devi, Mayavati, Sushma Swaraj, Vasundhara Raje Sindhia and Jai Lalitha are the prominent political figures. Pratibha Devi Patil and Meera Kumar have had the most honourable and responsible chair of the President of Indian Republic and Speaker of the Lok Sabha respectively. Apart from these achievements there is 33 per cent reservation for the women in Panchayat Elections. Of course the recent move of the government to table the Women Reservation Bill in the parliament indicates to bring women in the mainstream of the Indian politics. If this bill does pass in both of the houses, it will become a law to provide 33 per cent seats to women in the parliament. Naina Lal Qidwai is the only Indian business women among the world millionaires. But on the other front the market forces have posed new challenges before the women.
In 1991 our government adopted and implemented new economic policy. Under this policy the government started neo-liberal reforms in the form of liberating export-import duties (amending FERA of 1973) and capital flow and Indian Patent Act of 1970. These amendments at policy level in trade and commerce are being cultivated in economic terms. Though, after 1991 the rate of GDP growth has been increased and the condition of balance of payment has been improved, but in the socio-cultural terms our society has undergone the new changes that are influenced by the new economic reforms, which is a synonym of globalization in the Indian context. The liberal economic activities inspire the women to come out from their kitchens and ensure active participation in the different spheres of life. Of course the participation of the women has increased in some urban business, services and other socio-educational field. It’s a matter of pleasure that anyhow women are being empowered. According to census women literacy rate has raised up to 53.7 per cent in 2001. Their work participation rate also improved. It has observed 25.6 percent in 2001. In public and private sector employment the proportion of women has surprisingly increased. In public sector enterprises the women employment reached up to 28.59 lacks in 2001 from 23.47 lacks of 1991. Also in the private sector the women employment graph shows a little bit improvement. The number of employed women was counted 14.34 lacks in 1991 while it was 65.62 lacks in 2001. These data are enough to analyze the increasing number of women in education and employment.
But the basic problems of common women are still waiting for a solution. Gender based discrimination is one of the major hurdle in the way to women empowerment. Due to discrimination the women are still facing severe problems regarding health, education and freedom in their respected houses as well as in the society. Since the capital encourages the notion of women freedom in form of providing them jobs in the private sector offices, but the nature of the job is very malicious. The capitalist global forces are rendering the women as a market product which may be sold or bought paying a certain amount. The image of a woman is being reflected as a consuming thing by the means of TV, Radio and other sources of communication. The advertisement producer, the film makers, and the serial producers are eagerly promoting the ultra openness of women in the name of women liberty. It’s not fair for the patriarchal society that it has any natural right to set the socio-cultural parameters for the women. But it’s need of hour to be vigilant about the vested interest of the capitalist global forces. We will have to realize the role of capital (in the form of FDI) and market forces to uplift socio-economic and educational condition of women. As we know, the advertisements, films and TV serials are very influential means of communication. These means always need huge infrastructural support. That’s why the service provider asks for large amount of money to telecast the advertisement. Of course the basic idea behind any advertisement is to make aware the consumers about the particular product. But the advertisements advertized on the TV screens, Internet or Radio are women centric in its nature. When a common woman watches the smiles and act of the women artists on the TV screens, she tries to imitate the same. Because she easily convinced by the fabricated ideas about the particular product reflected in the advertisements. She finally realizes that her personality will only be completed if she possesses the same product. But she would never try to understand this fact that wearing fancy items and using high quality cosmetics do not bring change in her life. It does not mean that I want to impose a kind of restriction on day to day needs of a woman.
In fact there are two motivating forces work to exploit the female emotions. First is patriarchal thinking and second one is capitalist market forces. A third category may be seen as the combination of patriarchal and market approaches. Patriarchy never allows women to step out from home. It always imposes cultural restrictions on their lively hood. On the other hand capitalist system always allows them to go to the market. But the institutions established by the market forces had been witnessed to exploit women in the name of their liberalization. That’s why the Indian women are supposed to face challenges on the two fronts at a time. As I mentioned the above example of the advertisements, films and TV serials, now these means has become an imperative carrier to bring the consumer culture into our bedrooms.
But on the other hand the global forces are involved to promote and institutionalize the market culture of consumption. The latter is, indeed, the culture in which on every stage the common people are supposed to face the culture of the particular “Terms and Conditions”. The pride and pleasure in the relation of hierarchy, superiority and segregation are some of the features of that terms and conditions. Obviously this is a demerit of globalization and this poses new challenges to the gender relation and cooperative ethics of joint family. Presently the idea of globalization inspires people to invest, earn and consume. In this process the people are led to a state of mind where the logic of market gets prioritized over the natural social responsibilities. It is a kind of marketed human souls characterized by narrowness, individualism, insensitivity and dehumanization. These features of life are reflected in the common place phrase such as- “It’s my way of life”.
