Disha Singh (22), from Morena in the Chambal region of Madhya Pradesh, is often mistaken for a boy in her neighbourhood. She keeps her hair cropped short, rides a bike and wears T-shirts and cargos, openly defying the unwritten code of conduct for women in the region.
Unlike her peers, Disha refuses to conform to societal norms and fiercely values her independence – a decision that also underpins her refusal to get married in a rush. Instead, she dreams of making it big as a cricketer.
In Morena, however, such behaviour is viewed as eccentric and dismissed with derision. Situated at the trijunction of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, the district has failed to keep pace with other parts of India in development and progress.
Morena ranks low on several human development indices, including sex ratio. Over the years, much has changed; what has remained constant, however, are patriarchy-enforced norms for women. Child marriage and early marriage are still practised, and women’s education is often ignored or actively discouraged.
Adding to its notoriety, Morena has long been dubbed India’s Wild West due to its association with dakaits (dacoits) until the 1980s.
As the great-granddaughter of Dongar Sikarwar, one of the most feared baaghis –…
