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www.GOALias.blogspot.comRise of Popular Movements 139Credit: India Todayto women and of gender inequalitieswere complicated in nature. Duringthe decade of the eighties women’smovement focused on issues of sexual family and outside. These groups ran acampaign against the system of dowryand demanded personal and propertylaws based on the norms of genderequality.These campaigns contributed agreat deal in increasing overall socialawareness about women’s questions.Focus of the women’s movement graduallyshifted from legal reforms to open socialconfrontations like the one we discussedabove. As a result the movement madedemands of equal representation towomen in politics during the nineties. Weknow that 73rd and 74th amendmentshave granted reservations to women inlocal level political offices. Demands forextending similar reservations in Stateand Central legislatures have also beenmade. A constitution amendment bill tothis effect has been proposed but hasnot received enough support from theParliament yet. Main opposition to thebill has come from groups, includingsome women’s groups, who are insistingon a separate quota for Dalit and OBCwomen within the proposed women’squota in higher political offices.Let’s watch a FilmAAKROSHThe lawyer Bhaskar Kulkarniis assigned a legal aid case torepresent Bhiku Lahanya, anAdivasi who is charged withmurdering his wife. The lawyertries hard to find out the causeof the killing but the accused isdeterminedly silent and so is hisfamily. The lawyer’s perseveranceleads to an attack on him and alsoa tip off by a social worker aboutwhat had happened.But the social worker disappearsand Bhiku’s father dies. Bhiku ispermitted to attend the funeralof his father. It is here that Bhikubreaks down and the ‘Aakrosh’(screaming cry) erupts….Thishard hitting film depicts the subhumanlife of the oppressedand the uphill task facing anyintervention against dominantsocial powers.Women’s demonstration in favour of anti-dowry act.Year: 1980Director: Govind NihlaniStory: Vijay TendulkarScreenplay: Satyadev DubeyActors: Naseeruddin Shah, OmPuri, Smita Patil, Nana Patekar,Mahesh Elkunchwar