What Is Women Empowerment?

Today, I was reminiscing about an evening almost four years ago in Delhi. It was past 11 pm and we were in returning home after having dinner and were chatting about the food at the restaurant. After the conversation was over, I started doing what I normally love to do while in a car. I was peering out of the car window on to deserted streets. Then, as our car stopped at a red signal. As we waited for the signal to turn green, an autorickshaw (tuktuk) drove by and stopped right next to us. As the street light fell on the driver's face, I saw something very unusual. I noticed a middle-aged lady in the driver’s seat of the auto-rickshaw. It took me some time to digest that. In a country like India especially late in the night, it is not normal to find a lady driving an auto. As I continued looking at her, the lady noticed my expressionless face and gave me a look saying "of course girls can drive autos. What do you think of us? ". Thankfully the signal was pretty long, so I got enough time to react. As soon as I understood what was happening, I gave her the widest smile that my tiny face would allow. And the satisfied smile that I received from her in return was so priceless, it made me question my thought process. Later that night, I kept wondering why I was so astonished to see a lady driving. Growing up, my family has never discriminated between boys and girls. Then why did I find this incident so hard to believe?

Today, 4 years later, I realize that maybe, I know what this means. We never think that women are naturally independent. We don't need anyone but us to believe in ourselves. I think I know what it means to support and empower women. Empowerment doesn't mean slogans, debates, social media posts, or rallies. 

It means to show the world how powerful you are, by your actions. What you do, is more important than what you think or say. Silence is golden. 

To all the women and girls out there, don't worry if the society oppresses you. Believe in your dreams, stay calm, and let your success speak...