Sameer D. Shaikh

The Indian Constitution guarantees the right to equality for all. Equal opportunity, equal protection, and equal justice are the key aspects of this document. A gutsy Maharashtrian woman, Dr Benazeer Tamboli, took up the responsibility of translating these basic rights into reality for the marginalised communities of Indians, including Muslim women.

Benazeer was raised in a family with progressive thoughts. The ideas of Hamid Dalwai, the founder of the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal influenced her family.

Her father, Ilahi Momin, used to work with Dalwai. Growing up in such an ideological environment, Benazeer imbibed the values of equality and freedom in her mind and behaviour from childhood.

Dr Benazeer Tamboli at a public function

Benazir faced a tumultuous marriage. The environment at her in-laws' house was steeped in traditions and religious orthodoxy, and incompatible with her progressive and open-minded upbringing. This made her face many complications and an eventual divorce.

This period was extremely difficult for her. But Benazeer did not give up. She decided to overcome this and stand on her own feet.

She recalls, "Since childhood, I had faith in my intellectual abilities and a fighting spirit inherited from my father... No matter what happens, I shouldn't get scared, I'll figure something out, I'll fight... this was my attitude to face any problem."

After the divorce, she completed a fashion design course and started stitching clothes. She immersed herself and became financially independent. She says, "We shouldn't have to beg from anyone, even for our small needs... I was thinking about what could be done to stand on my own feet."

This struggle was not just financial but mental as well. But she found a way through it. Later, she gave interviews for the position of lecturer and succeeded there, too.

Dr Benazeer, who has been working in the education sector for decades, says about Urdu medium education, "Without saying that one should not study in Urdu medium at all, many boys and girls study in Urdu medium due to circumstances, helplessness, or availability. It is not their fault."

To help these students develop language skills, especially English, she took the initiative through the organisation 'Tanzeem-e-Valedain' to visit Urdu medium schools and teach English to students, implementing many successful experiments. She also presented a thesis based on this initiative.

Through her experience, Benazeer realised the problems faced by Muslim women. She threw herself into the work of the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal.

Through the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal, she implemented many activities and consistently raised her voice for women's rights, especially for the equal rights of Muslim women. Also, through the 'Muslim Mahila Madat Kendra' (Muslim Women's Help Centre), she gave valuable support to many divorced and victimised women.

Based on her experience, she presents thoughts on social welfare very firmly. She always insists that constitutional and judicial processes must be used to resolve divorce or family disputes.

Benazeer Tamboli with a foreigner

Benaeer's journey was not limited to social work; she also made her mark in the educational and ideological fields. She completed her PhD in Education and taught in various colleges and universities.

Apart from this, she has also worked as a Senior Educational Coordinator in the 'Maharashtra Knowledge Corporation' (MKCL) for a long time, and has more than two decades of experience in the field of education and educational management.

While working at Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth, she maintained her social commitment as the Nodal Officer of the Women's Atrocities Prevention Cell. Recognising her courageous and dedicated work, she has been honoured with awards like the 'Sahas Samman' (2015) in New Delhi and the 'Sevavrati Mahila Puraskar' (2017) in Pune.

Benazeer Tamboli with women activists

Along with her educational work, her ideological work is equally extensive and important. Having mastery over Marathi, Hindi, and English, she has done a lot of translation and editing work. She has served as the co-editor of 'Muslim Satyashodhak Patrika' and 'Samajwadi Adhyapak Patrika'.

She has been a regular writer with Mandal's magazine and delivered scholarly lectures at various places. Her 'Shikshanshastra Shabdkosh' (Education Dictionary) is a significant project.

She has also authored 'Prabhavshali Shikshan Tajna' (Influential Educationists), translated the Telugu short story collection of Sheikh Yusuf Baba (known as 'Sky Baba' in the South) into Marathi,(and this will be published soon.

Dr Benazeer Tamboli with an interfaith couple at their wedding

These stories effectively depict various segments of the Muslim community, especially women.

Dr Benazeer Tamboli's book

However, often people do not know enough about them. Therefore, she plans to collect information about them and document the information in a book,

Her proposed book, she feels, will be important in changing society's perspective on Muslim women.

She believes in carrying forward the thoughts of the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal and Hamid Dalwai.  With this, she is determined to remain active in this movement and continue working as long as possible.

Dr Benazeer Tamboili with others

In recent times, the safety of couples entering into interfaith marriages has become a pressing issue. In such a situation, she intends to work more rapidly to encourage couples to marry under the 1954 'Special Marriage Act' and provide them with legal and emotional support. She wishes to work with a single-point agenda of reducing growing hatred in society and promoting 'Unity and Integration'.

In other words, Benazeer Tamboli's onward journey will continue along two paths: ideological awakening through her pen and social transformation through action. She specifically notes that she has the invaluable support of her husband, Dr Shamsuddin Tamboli, in this.

Rising above difficulties following a divorce and financial hardships, she rebuilt her life and also supported other women. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Dr. Benazeer Tamboli is the perfect example of how a woman should not just accept defeat before circumstances, but find a way through them to illuminate her own life and the lives of others.

Her work, her thoughts, and her determination are highly inspiring for everyone in society, especially for Muslim women.