With drum and cymbals, women make a musical protest at Chilla border

As the male members of their families have been camping at Chilla border and protesting against the three new farm laws since Tuesday, seven women from Charoli village

As the male members of their families have been camping at Chilla border and protesting against the three new farm laws since Tuesday, seven women from Charoli village in Uttar Pradesh’s Jewar arrived at the protest venue on Sunday morning, carrying with them carrying traditional musical instruments such as dhol (drums) and manjiras (cymbals).

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Throughout Sunday, seven women, aged between 60 and 75 years, registered their protest through songs in their local dialect and demanded that the three farm laws be scrapped. The women said they would stay put at the venue until their demands are met by the government. The women said apart from participating in the protests, they will also assist with cooking meals for farmers who have been camping at Chilla border, which is completely closed to vehicular traffic since Saturday.

“My husband, two sons and grandsons have been protesting here for the past six days. We thought that they would return after a day or two. But as the government has not accepted the demands of farmers, even after five rounds of meetings, we decided to come here and support our men. There was no point sitting idle at home while the men in our families fight this battle while braving the chill,” said Veerwat Devi,75.

When the women arrived around 11am, the male protesters greeted them and informed everyone about their arrival through loudspeakers. Without wasting time, the women sat on the road, took out their musical instruments and began singing songs that, they said, they composed themselves. Soon, many male protesters too joined in.

“This fight is not only of our men -- they do not produce crops alone. If we contribute to farming in our villages, why can’t we be a part of the agitation? If the situation demands it, even the younger women and children of our villages will join the protest. We can remain hungry for days and are ready to die here if the government will not scrap the laws,” said Rajni Devi, who was playing the dhol.

After finishing their first round of singing, the women went to the makeshift community kitchen, enquired about lunch preparations and offered help.

“We will cook dinner tonight for everyone. Our protest will now continue till the government meets our demands,” said Ratan Kaur, 75, the eldest among the seven.