A warm and a dignified personality

Purandareswari is not the first Parliamentarian from Hyderabad and neither is she is the first Telugu-speaking woman representing Andhra Pradesh. So what makes her special and what makes her a role model to others? The recent Women’s Forum organized by the Telugu Association of North America at Washington revealed the many facets of the Minister’s personality.

A housewife first and a minister and social worker next, Purandareswari comes across as a confident person. She asserts, “I have never looked at politics as a male domain and have never considered my fight different because I am a woman. I have taken things as a challenge. As an MP, I feel that I am sensitive to certain issues because I am a woman.”

She was identified as NT Ramarao’s daughter only on the first day and that too until she began her maiden speech. Functioning from a traditionally conservative male-dominated family the lady has a lot to offer a role model for others. For her the path to politics was not predictable but when she found herself in it, she had turned her inexperience into a strength. She had worked hard and made things work for herself.

I never speak without my homework, she said once but she stumped the audience with an hour long impromptu and a heart warming speech aimed at women’s empowerment.

Women’s issues remain a focus area for Purandareswari. She said, “Empowerment is not all that rosy. We have women working for long hours and getting tired. They come home to find emotional unrest. She doesn’t have time for children and her husband. A lot of divorces happen and that is not the solution. You need to balance your life. I too work and most of the time I am away from Hyderabad but I put in my best to maintain my family. I talk to my husband  and children. Am I subservient? No I keep my family together and balance it very well.”

She added, “It is not that the government is not doing anything, we have been earnestly trying to improve the status of women in our lives but unless we have a change in the mindset of the people, it will be impossible to stop them from looking at women as an ornamental piece. She needs to be respected.” People who know her term Purandareswari as a simple person with deep values and those who have had just an acquaintance describe her as a warm and a dignified woman. Sources say she is always chosen, to represent the country when it came to highlighting core issues to people, over those who are senior to her in age and experience.

Says a source, “What works to her advantage is that she has a deep knowledge of important issues in her riding. She had debates with her opponents and it becomes clear to the people that she could not only understand their problems better but also come up with solutions from a fresh perspective.”

It is a special moment for women and men of course in our country because for the first time we have a woman being elected President Of India and also a right time to discuss the emergence of our lady in the international scene.