Charu Sinha calls for change in family gender norms at panel discussion
Telangana Women Safety Wing Director General Charu Sinha on Saturday said awareness and dialogue within families were essential to challenging patriarchal attitudes and promoting gender
Telangana Women Safety Wing Director General Charu Sinha on Saturday said awareness and dialogue within families were essential to challenging patriarchal attitudes and promoting gender equality, while addressing the fifth edition of the Stand With Her panel discussion series in Hyderabad. The discussion focused on the theme, “Equality, Care and Emotional Honesty in Families – Gender Equality and Patriarchal Attitudes.” The event brought together experts from academia, cinema, journalism, social activism and law enforcement, to examine how social norms within families continue to shape gender roles, emotional expression and caregiving responsibilities.
“It is a rule book no one has written, but everyone follows,” said Ms. Charu Sinha, referring to the invisible norms that often dictate gender roles within households. She added that greater awareness and conversations could help bring about meaningful social change. The panel also featured K. Suneetha Rani, Dean of the School of Social Sciences at the University of Hyderabad, Planetarium Vegan Foundation founder Poornima Deepika, film producer and actor Supriya Yarlagadda, filmmaker Sashi Kiran Tikka and University of Hyderabad research scholar Aman Kumar. Suneetha Rani said families should nurture equality and emotional well-being rather than reinforce restrictive gender roles, observing that “family is a bonding, not a bondage.” Supriya Yarlagadda spoke about the importance of freeing individuals from gender-based expectations, saying that removing such conditions allows people to realise their full potential.
Poornima Deepika stressed the importance of self-care, particularly for women who are often expected to place the needs of others before their own, while Sashi Kiran Tikka urged men to actively participate in conversations on gender equality, saying such discussions were necessary to challenge patriarchal attitudes. Aman Kumar shared sociological perspectives on how gender norms are learned and perpetuated within families, while the discussion also explored the importance of emotional honesty, shared caregiving responsibilities and mutual respect in building equitable homes. Organisers said the year-long campaign seeks to encourage constructive conversations on gender equality through monthly discussions on different themes.
Saturday’s session concluded with participants emphasising that lasting social change begins within families by promoting equality, empathy and shared responsibility.
The BriefWire