Moving Beyond Surface Praise: Uncovering Gender Bias in Daily Language
On occasions like International Women’s Day, it is all too easy to rely on familiar phrases—labeling women as "goddesses," celebrating them as the "fairer sex," or praising their "softness." But do these clichés genuinely reflect equality, or do they subtly reinforce outdated stereotypes? In a compelling narrative, a speaker challenges a group of bright college students to look beyond superficial praise and examine something far more powerful: the everyday language we use.
A Classroom Exercise That Reveals Hidden Prejudices
The speaker, addressing students at a prestigious IIIT on Women’s Day, rejected tired clichés like "Women are like Goddesses on earth" or "the softer side of life." Instead, she focused on where real change begins: at home. She highlighted that even champions of equality often harbor unconscious habits, and the obvious starting point is our domestic environments.
Drawing on her fluency in Tamil and Telugu, she conducted a simple yet striking exercise. She asked students to translate common English sentences into these languages, using casual, day-to-day terms. The results were eye-opening.
- Father is coming: Tamil: "Appa Varaanga." Telugu: "Nanna garu vastunnaaru."
- Bus is coming: Tamil: "Bus Varudu." Telugu: "Bus vastunnadi."
- Dog is coming: Tamil: "Naay varuthu." Telugu: "Kukka vastunnadi."
- Brother is coming: Tamil: "Thambi varaan." Telugu: "Tammudu vastunnaadu."
- Sister is coming: After a pause, Tamil: "Thankacchi Varuthu." Telugu: "Chellu vasthunnadi."
- Mother is coming: Tamil: "Amma Varuthu." Telugu: "Amma vastunnadi."
The students quickly realized the pattern: while father receives respectful terms, and brother is acknowledged as a peer, sister and mother are referred to with the same language used for a pet dog or an inanimate object like a bus.
Clarifying the Context and Broader Implications
The speaker emphasized that this is not about claiming Indians do not love their mothers—they do, perhaps more than many cultures. Nor is it specific to Tamil and Telugu; these are examples from languages she knows well, illustrating majoritarian language use. Similar non-gender-balanced terms likely exist in other languages and contexts.
A common reaction to this language discrimination is that it stems from "greater closeness." However, the same terms are often used for female teachers and colleagues, questioning whether such closeness is genuine. The reality is that women are often taken for granted, and we are all, consciously or unconsciously, part of this systemic bias.
The Power of Language to Shape Culture and Values
This bias manifests right before our eyes, at home and from childhood, embedded in our everyday speech. Language expresses our thoughts, which in turn reflect our attitudes and beliefs. To achieve true equality, we must consciously reverse this process, starting with language itself.
By using gender-balanced words with children at home, in primary schools, and on playgrounds, we can reorient our thoughts and build the right values. Gender sensitivity can become deeply etched into our culture once again, with language serving as the chisel to sculpt a more equitable society.
Authored by V.G. Bhooma, a senior Indian Railway Personnel Service (IRPS) officer, currently serving as Additional Member (HR) and Additional Member (Staff) at the Railway Board, Ministry of Railways.
