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In her role as the Senior Editor & Community Manager at Women's Web, Sandhya Renukamba is fortunate to associate every day with a whole lot of smart and fabulous writers and readers. A doctor turned writer, she has been one of the oldest writers at Women's Web. Sandhya lives in a house full of books, and has been published at various prestigious publications which include Saffron Tree, The Alternative, ArtsyCraftsyMom, Goodbooks, MyCity4Kids, The Tribune, and much else.
Innovation that includes harnessing data and AI is the future for all digital commerce, and we need to be agile enough to incorporate these.
The theme for IWD 2024 is 'Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress'. Are you doing your part in this big picture?
Twinkle Khanna recently completed her Masters degree at the University of London. Her husband, Akshay Kumar was proud, but also put her on a pedestal - do women really want that?
You could have some plans to turn your dreams into reality this year... Tell us all about it. Here's what you need to do.
Like every year, we have a number of excellent pieces published in 2023. And like I do it every year, here is a ready round-up of those pieces that you, as readers, have shown the most love towards.
This festive season, we'd like you to share your stories on something that you did for yourselves, celebrating yourself. Let's spread the joy!
As a working woman, you have a right to have your #PeriodAtWork story heard. And speaking up is the first step to making a change – let us all be changemakers!
Your favourite platform Women's Web is 13, and we're celebrating. Here is how you can be a part of our celebrations. Read to the end.
Here at Women’s Web, we know that real inclusion matters, and we walk the talk. With inclusive workplace policies, in the content we publish throughout the year, and our community. So Celebrating Pride for us is more than just adopting rainbow filters for Pride Month, it is standing up for the community and their rights […]
This murder-suicide on 21 year olds on a campus that is presumed to be 'safe' has really shaken me. Why do young men feel they somehow "own" young women?!
There's a scene in the series between Anjali Bhatti and her mother, at their home. Anjali is home for a few hours of rest, tired, after nearly 60 hrs of non-stop work on the case.
We know that many women have been inspired and empowered by their mothers OR mothers-in-law (or the other way around) to make a difference in the world, especially through their career or business. So tell us your story!
Dismissal of our symptoms. Or misdiagnosis. Or treatment not given properly. Or we are shamed for what we suffer or feel. Or even as women, we often ignore our ill health. Sounds familiar?
Buying silver jewellery online is quite the thing, I hear. And with so many exquisite options, why not gift something to someone you love?
With powerhouse performances by the lead cast and the supporting cast in the many subplots, Netflix series Trial by Fire about the 1997 Uphaar tragedy is a must watch.
Jyoti Singh Pandey was just a young woman who was looking forward to a future. She did not want to be labelled 'Nirbhaya' - can men keep their monstrous selves away from us?
In 2022, I have published hundreds of articles as the editor, and I have great pleasure showcasing the work of these 25 top authors. Cheers!
They say if you do work you enjoy, it doesn't remain 'work'. So is your business something that came from your dream or a loved hobby? Tell us.
In 1963, Annie Ernaux, 23 and unattached, realizes she is pregnant. Shame arises in her like a plague: Understanding that her pregnancy will mark her and her family as social failures, she knows she cannot keep that child.
What could be more iconic of an Indian summer than mangoes? And how better to do it yourself than try out some mango recipes?
I was told that I shouldn’t have travelled alone since I’m a woman. I shouldn’t be “so open” on LinkedIn. I was asked why my Instagram profile was public when it had pictures of me in a swimsuit?
Scrambling for last minute Mother's Day gift ideas but don't want to compromise on the fun factor or quality? Here is a handy list.
There is a whole bunch of fabulous cookbooks by Westland which cover a variety of Indian cuisines, which will be now lost to us, unless they are published by other publishers - which is not a guarantee.
Amazon’s announcement to close Westland Books and its 4 imprints by 28th February 2022 is a huge blow to its authors. Can you do this to help? On the 1st of February 2022, Amazon announced that by the end of the month, Westland Books will be closed. This includes books published by Westland, as well […]
Access to easy and safe contraception has opened up enormous possibilities, and has literally been the one thing that truly made way for women's careers and dreams to come true. Maybe why men want to control them.
We're marking 26th Sept 2021 World Contraception Day and 28th Sept International Safe Abortion Day, critical for women's health. Do you have a personal story to share? Then do read below.
Explaining things to kids in terms they understand plays a huge role in allaying any fears or worries, and books are a huge help. Books to explain COVID and the lockdown.
Why must queer characters in a story mean that a narrative of romance or sex is a must? 4 extraordinary books that throw away this assumption.
A new Netflix release, Skater Girl, shows what women can do if they stand up for themselves and other women, never mind the patriarchy.
Mother's Day is on the horizon, and we'd like to know your personal stories of being a more mindful parent, or of your mother taking the step to break the chain.
Do you feel strongly about social issues, and dream of a just society? Then this IWD 2021 blogathon I Choose To Challenge is for you.
Savarna feminists have been conspicuous by their absence all day in the voices raised against the horrific incident against 3 young Dalit girls in Unnao yesterday. Where's the sisterhood?
Phir Zindagi... on organ donation is an extraordinary film based on a true story, that has convinced me to pledge my organs after death.
Given the pandemic, International Women's Day 2021 events would be online, so these virtual ideas for IWD can be adapted to your workplace.
Work From Home was the buzzword in 2020, but there were other workplace issues too. Here are 11 writers who wrote about this changing landscape and more.
2020 has been a horrible year in so many ways, and we have tried to find for you some heartwarming, positive stories on Women's Web.
Planning to read more in 2021 and would like book club recommendations? Here are 10 picks from the editor's desk for you.
Trying to think of Christmas gift ideas at the last minute? No worries - we have you covered. You could pick from this eclectic list.
What would you like with your tea? Either a hot, piping cuppa of well boiled masala chai, or green tea, or even a cup of chilled chai?
Today morning I came across this news item on The Wire that completely shook me. What is this pressure to have a child that is so deeply entrenched in Indian minds, that it makes monsters of us?
Tabu is a quite underrated actor, and has very few movies with her at the centre. But these Tabu movies will always have my heart.
Women all over the world are posting their photos in the black and white challenge with hashtags like #challengeaccepted. What is this about?
Women's sexuality belongs to them, and no one has a right to dictate, no matter what society or popular culture tells you. A look at the top 10 posts of #ADecadeOfWomensWeb
Why does there need to be a special category for Women's Mental Health? Because it is often put on the back burner. Here are the top 10 posts from #ADecadeOfWomensWeb
Reviews, soul searching & feminist theme explorations, essential books to read, and even insightful interviews with authors - here's to #ADecadeOfWomensWeb
Women's Web is all about enabling women to tell their own stories. So here we are, with the top 10 posts that are about Women's Rights & Feminism, in #ADecadeOfWomensWeb.
Here are some of the best LGBTQIA+ posts that have been published on Women's Web in the past 10 years. #ADecadeOfWomensWeb #PrideMonth
The author calls out what she says is neglect by hospitals overburdened by COVID-19, who refused to admit an 8 month pregnant woman in an emergency situation, leading to her death.
There are scientifically proven ways to deal with negative emotions and attitudes when you are stuck at home.
Heer was a badass woman who followed her own heart, enough for a patriarchal society to stop their daughters from listening to her story. In Search of Heer, with author Manjul Bajaj.
Writer and motivational speaker Paromita Bardoloi realised the need for a safe, inclusive online space for people to connect on during the lockdown, so she started Let's Huddle India.
We've put together a handy list of mostly free online counselling, legal/ medical / OBGYN advice, student counselling, for those who need it during lockdown.
Everything about Kalki Koechlin's journey to motherhood from her early pregnancy to the birth of her daughter Sappho shouts out that the new mom is an unapologetic feminist.
We recently celebrated Women's Web's annual festival in Mumbai, where the Orange Flower Awards that celebrate women's voices have been given out. Let's meet the winners and runners-up, and see their winning entries.
3 politicians share the distress of vicious and deeply personal attacks from trolls just because they are women, and of course, 'women should be silenced'!
Two feminist icons, Kanhaiya Kumar and Shashi Tharoor, revealed themselves to be 'woke' only in our imaginations, by making sexist, transphobic remarks. How do we hope for better men?
As we approach the end of the year, I look back at my journey as Senior Editor at Women's Web, and remember some of the best posts of 2019 that have truly made a mark on me.
We need positive stories to keep up our belief in the human condition. Here are 5 of the many positive stories we shared with you, our readers, in 2019.
It is 2019, but we're still grappling with this reality in our country. Girls are subject to immeasurable violence of various sort purely because they're female. When will this change?
Onam sadya is one of the best meals one can have, but what does one do of the leftover Onam food? Here's help.
Each one of us on the Women's Web team has come to this team in such different ways, live very different lives - yet we have a kernel of similarity that fits us all together like a wonderful jigsaw puzzle.
Mother's Day is always on a Sunday - catch up with your moms today with some wonderful, sensitively made, not-so-stereotypical mother daughter movies, from this decade.
Pink for girls and blue for boys, right? Wrong! Yet we see so much of pink in the products that today's 'girlie' culture has for girls and even women. Where did it come from?
Are you a mom who also believes in dreaming your own dreams and pushing for them even as you do what you want to for your kids? Then write for our #MomAndMore blogathon for Mother's Day 2019.
The 2019 elections are half done, the rest of the country waiting to cast its vote. But do you know that the well oiled machinery of the polls runs on the labours of some "invisible" personnel, a large number of whom are women?
Having a career and the financial independence it means creates an identity for women beyond their traditional roles in homes. Which is why workplace equality should be a given.
A TGIF visit to the movies with friends, and I was watching something that might just be revolutionary in mainstream Indian Cinema - a same sex love story that everyone in the family can watch!
A group of writers got together for a writing workshop, and the anthology Escape Velocity grew out of their stories. Does it deliver what it promised?
A handy roundup of interesting new books in January 2019 by Indian women authors that have to be added to your to-be-read list.
A handy roundup of interesting new books for December 2018 by Indian women authors that can be added to your to-be-read list.
An adult Indian woman recently put up a Facebook post about having told by an immigration officer that she could not travel unless she had permission from her parents or another male.
Kipling has famously stated - Oh, East is East and West is West, and never the twain shall meet… this is so true. Until one imbibes the 'foreign' culture one visits, and makes it one’s own.
Feisty at Fifty: How I Stay Fabulous at Fifty-Plus by Sudha Menon promises to be an interesting read going by the cover page and title. Does it deliver?
Bystander intervention by speaking up, reporting a crime, and following it up does give results, even if not satisfactory every time. But that did not faze these inspiring women who are committed to getting a rapist punished.
A handy roundup of interesting new books for November 2018 by Indian women authors (and one by a non-Indian author that we think is a must-read), that can be added to your to-be-read list.
A handy roundup of interesting new books in October 2018 by Indian women authors (and a couple by non-Indian authors that we think are a must-read), that can be added to your to-be-read list.
A school in Bangalore discriminated against a genderqueer writer who was to be a speaker at a children's literature fest. What went wrong, and how can we change our attitudes towards the LGBT+ community?
We have a responsibility towards our kids, to give them the right values that enable them to respect any human being, of any gender. How are we going so wrong that 17-18 year olds feel entitled to rape?
A handy roundup of interesting new books for September 2018 by Indian women authors, that can be added to your to-be-read list.
Urvashi Butalia speaks to real women survivors in The Other Side Of Silence, the biggest casualties of the Partition, suffering in war zones that see men come out at their worst.
31st July, is a double birthday for Potterheads - Harry Potter "born as the seventh month dies" and the creator of the books, JK Rowling. Here are 10 Rowling quotes not from the HP books.
The Nobel for Literature for 2018 had been cancelled earlier this year, because the Swedish Academy had been dismantled following sex scandals due to the #MeToo movement.
Wouldn't you like to know what your favourite women authors have read recently? 9 of these authors recommend their best read in 2018.
Why should people marry? Is it just the things we're told by elders that have to do with the mundane? What about love and companionship? Do we always get it?
The Girl In The Broken Mirror by Savita Kalhan is a book I'd recommend to anyone over 16, a book that shines a light on the rape culture that dehumanises a rape survivor.
Searching for some girl power quotes? Look no further! Here are some girl power quotes by your favourite authors and characters.
These women innovators have made a mark in their chosen fields, making a difference with their work. Do find out more about them here.
I have had a love-hate relationship with the story of Ram and Sita all my life. Despite that, a live performance of the Geet Ramayan touched my soul.
Non-heterosexual people are human beings just like you and I, and have a right to be themselves. Here are 13 positive pride month quotes that could be a first step towards light.
A personal list of Sridevi movies that I have loved. My heartfelt tribute to this excellent woman actor and strong woman. May you rest in peace, Sridevi!
Valentine's Day has been thoroughly 'hallmarked' and makes for extremely cheesy quotes on love, unlike these quotes about love from books.
#Poetry. A woman often has no right to her own self, simply because she is born a woman. When will this change? When will she be able to own her self and her life?
No matter how bad we think the world is, people are intrinsically good, and do help in times of need, as this personal account of the kindness of strangers proves.
Today, 7th July, is World Chocolate Day. What would be more perfect than checking out a list of delectable books on chocolate, and adding them to your to-be-read list?
Double or Quits by Shilpa Gupta is a pageturner that brings you a strong woman protagonist who refuses to stay down despite circumstances.
These Mother's Day quotes show mothers as being their own persons, wanting to live their own lives, and refusing to be put on a pedestal.
Check out these books on inclusive stories for kids on Saffron Tree, during their online festival CROCUS, this World Disability Day, 3rd December.
So, Sania Mirza, the no 1 tennis player who has very firmly put India on the world sports map, has yet again faced the inevitable consequence of being a woman.
Life might seem hopeless when a relationship fails, but there is life beyond all that, in which YOU are important.
We asked you, our readers, "If there is one thing you could let go from your life, what would it be, and why?" Here are the 10 best answers from our readers.
The festival of Holi has become a convenient reason for street harassment of women, what with the licence to misbehave that men take.
Who decides what should be accepted feminine behaviour? Why can't we just be ourselves? Human beings who can be unique?
Domestic violence can reduce most women to a cowering victim. This is a collection of narratives by 17 women who are survivors of domestic violence, and who have been courageously come out with their stories.
Christmas is a time for families to bask in the warmth of the festive season. This Christmas book list with suggestions for every age helps you usher in the festival spirit.
The poem here describes the author's intense love for books in evocative verse. The books define her, and make up a large part of her life. Read this third winning entry for our December Book Talk theme.
Are the festivals in India unfair to women? Are our festivals male-centric? Sandhya writes a thoughtful post.
Kirtida Gautam’s un-put-downable book, #IAm16ICanRape, is a hard-hitting, brilliant fictional deconstruction of a rape case.
The Gendered Nature of Alzheimer's.
We bring 10 must read memoirs by women of the subcontinent. Books that will inspire and make us look at ourselves in a different way.
Painful Sexual Intercourse or Dyspareunia in women is a common experience though hardly talked about. This piece, talks about its causes and cure.
You are young, eat well and are healthy too. So you think you can't get Osteoporosis? Think again. Here are 7 common myths about Osteoporosis, you must know.
The Other End Of The Corridor by Sujata Rajpal brings alive a protagonist caught in the web of a patriarchal society. Will she find her way out?
Ananya: A Bittersweet Journey, by Shilpa Gupta, is an interesting page-turner that deals with the various complexities involved in teenage lives.
The women of the Ramayana, especially Sita, have become benchmarks for Indian women over time. Here is a list of books with various approaches to the women of the Ramayana.
Gita Aravamudan's new book, Baby makers, is an in-depth and emotionally charged exploration of Indian surrogacy, aided by real life surrogacy stories.
When it comes to good health, the small things matter. Read on to find out what a lack of Calcium and Vitamin D may be doing to your body.
Shahnaz Bashir, in The Half Mother, brings to us a tale of ordinary civilians under attack, and the struggle of a lone woman for her right to dignity and life.
Through the history of the world, there have been a few extraordinary women to wield authority. Here are some powerful books on these powerful women.
Most of us love school stories, but do not know of others beyond Enid Blyton and Harry Potter. Here are 12 must read lesser known school stories.
The winds of Hastinapur, by Sharath Kommaraju, explores The Mahabharata in a way that has never been done before - through the eyes of an ensemble all-woman cast.
Stereotypes about women writers and readers as narrow in their reading aptitudes and 'sentimental' still exist, but they harm both women and men.
Besides ‘big name’ books such The Female Eunuch and The Vagina Monologues, some lesser known books too inspire change for women.
Have you ever lost something that seems trivial, and yet so important at that moment? A story of losing and recouping, all in the course of a day.
Love a well-written, feel good, heart-warming love story, and love good food, too? Andaleeb Wajid’s More Than Just Biryani is the perfect book to read.
Wish to work in health but have no medical degree? Have a medical background, but want to branch out? Here are alternate careers in health.
Vesna P. Jacob’s book, Fit to Fight is an invaluable resource for women who want to feel safer by knowing how they can defend themselves.
Parenting Teens In Modern Times by Anju Musafir-Chazot is the perfect resource for the bewildered parent caught between ground realities of Indian culture, western-centric parenting sites/books, and a ‘cool’ teenager.
What are some quick, easy and interesting lunch box ideas that don’t compromise on health and nutrition?
She is born a woman. Will she ever be able to be true to herself without being apologetic or being made to feel guilty about wanting to be herself?
Lalita Iyer’s book, I’m Pregnant, Not Terminally Ill, You Idiot! is an almost clairvoyant peek into the mind of every woman who goes through a pregnancy.
Convinced of the need for sex education for children, but having trouble teaching kids about the birds and bees? Books to the rescue!
Nandini Krishnan’s Hitched is an up-close and personal look at arranged marriages in the lives of today’s urban, educated, and progressive Indian women.
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's book Oleander Girl is a story of a young woman's search for her parentage and consequently her identity.
Kim Gattas’ The Secretary gives us an interesting insight into Hillary Clinton’s tenure as the US Secretary of State.
Here are 10 movies to watch with kids that will be a godsend for parents to keep little ones occupied during vacations.
Rashmi Bansal’s Follow Every Rainbow is a collection of inspiring, real life stories of some strong women who’ve charted their own paths.
What are the red flags that indicate common health problems in women? We tell you the signs that every woman must watch out for.
Sheila Kumar’s Kith And Kin is an almost voyeuristic peek into the lives of the Melekat clan, written in an unusual format.
The loss of loved one stakes a toll on women’s health; sometimes books can help when dealing with the grief.
As gender stereotyping affects every girl child in India, teaching kids to look beyond pinks and princesses becomes even more pertinent.
Amruta Patil’s Adi Parva is a feminist retelling of the Mahabharat, with an interesting focus on its women characters.
The recent India Inclusion Summit was an eye opener on Disability in India; Sandhya Renukamba shares her experience
Warrior In A Pink Sari is an autobiographical account of Sampat Pal, the feisty leader of Uttar Pradesh’s Gulabi Gang.
Diwali celebrations with family are always fun! Tips for Indian moms to make Diwali more special by including some meaningful family rituals.
No doubt children face peer pressure; but it can also affect parents. Some tips for Indian moms to deal with peer pressure.
P.Sivakami’s The Taming Of Women is a rustic story of the conflicts and struggles between tenacious women and tyrannical men.
Tips for teaching kids about equality and respect, which will help them grow up to be balanced and responsible individuals.
Sandhya writes about a friendship in which dissimilarities and differences simply don’t matter for our Friendship Story writing theme.
Teaching kids about diversity though important can be quite challenging for many parents. Here are 10 books about diversity for kids!
Sandhya talks about The Diary Of A Young Girl - the heartbreaking journal of Anne Frank describing the cruelty of Nazi persecution.
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