Let it grow

When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running

- JYOTI KUMARI

THE SWEET FRAGRANCE of freshly harvested mangoes reaches me before I enter the South Mumbai flat that Gaytri Bhatia is using as a temporary warehouse.

Surrounded by produce from her organic farm Vrindavan, Bhatia is seated on the floor, sorting deliveries, ready to dispatch the fruit of months of hard work to customers in Mumbai, the city she had left in 2009 to become a farmer. This is how it has always been-Bhatia slipping to the floor in the middle of a conversation, instinctively trying to be closer to the land she loves during her visits to the city. Her skin, now the colour of loam, the most fertile layer of soil, reflects years of hardwork, commitment and a desire to live in sync with nature and community.

With over a decade of sustained participation in village life, this environmental analyst turned farmer, once an outsider, is now approached by locals for her valuable insights. "Only when you experience the rain, the sun, the pain and the joy which are so unique to rural areas, can you truly speak their language," says Bhatia. From a distance, she seems to be living the slow life we fantasise about in our urban naivety. Away from the city, surrounded by greenery, growing our own food-isn't that every burnt-out millennial's dream? But all it takes is a quick Google search to come face to face with reality. Despite being part of a primarily agrarian economy, India's farmers are its most neglected stakeholders.

This disparity further increases when it comes to female farmers. Studies show that close to 73 per cent of rural women participate in farming activities but only 12.8 per cent own any land, and therefore, the right to be called a farmer. When I spoke to the independent journalist and author Nilanjana Bhowmick about this lack of credit, she pointed out two crucial points.