| Hello and welcome to Mind the Gap, a newsletter that adds perspective to the gender developments of the week. It's Dalit History Month, and I have a quiz for you. THE BIG QUIZ History books might not tell you about these trailblazing women but do you know who they are? 1. Everyone knows Savitribai Phule, the self-taught feminist reformer who is India's first female teacher, fought for girls' education, campaigned for widow remarriage and set up India's first infanticide prevention shelter in 1853 where unmarried women could leave their babies. In 1873 she organised a marriage. What was so unusual about it? 2. Name the 14th century Bhakti saint from the Mahar community who sang of family, the hardship of daily existence and devotion to God. Her 62 surviving abanghas (compositions) speak of being served left-over food and being denied entrance to the temple. 3. This woman warrior fought alongside Rani Lakshmibai in Jhansi in 1857 and, at the height of the battle, disguised herself as the queen, giving her the vital time needed to escape from the fort. Her name? 4. Udadevi Pasi is another Dalit virangana (brave woman) who played a key role in the 1857 rebellion alongside Begum Hazrat Mahal of Lucknow. What skill did she display at the battle of Sikanderbagh? 5. Dr BR Ambedkar called her his sister and it was she who gave the title 'Periyar' to EV Ramaswamy at the 1944 All India Scheduled Caste Federation Women's conference where she was president. Who was she? 6. There is no official record of her in history but legend has it that in the early 19th century, Nangeli, an Azhava woman who lived in Travancore state is said to have paid with her life by committing a radical act to challenge an oppressive law. What was the act and what was the law? 7. Shantabai Dhanaji Dani's memoirs record poverty, discrimination and caste apartheid by dominant caste Hindus. A staunch Ambedkarite, she eventually converted to Buddhism and in 1987 received the prestigious Savitri Bai Phule award for her work in education. Name her memoir. 8. The autobiography of this writer chronicles the life of Dalit Christian women in Tamil Nadu. At 26 she joined a seminary to be a nun but left seven years later to become a writer. In addition to her autobiography, she has written two novels and published a collection of short stories. What is her name? 9. Among the 299 members of the Constituent Assembly, only 15 were women and just one of them a Dalit. Who was she? 10. An ardent advocate for birth control, she argued: "There is no use multiplying sickly, ill-fed and illiterate children at the cost of the mother's health." Who? (For answers, please scroll to the end of this newsletter) A hat-tip to @dalithistorymonth, @dalit_history, @equalitylabs, Feminism in India and Badri Narayan's 2006 book, Women Heroes and Dalit Assertion in North India: Culture, Identity and Politics. | 
