Mumbai is often hailed as India’s safest city for women, but here too, there have been incidents of harassment and rape that have left them feeling unsafe, especially after sundown.
On January 13, people from various walks of life will participate in a 7-km run at Bandra Kurla Complex, called Urban Feet, to raise awareness on women’s safety and gender equality. Organised by UACTIV, a sports and fitness startup and Akshara Centre, a non-governmental organisation, the run will be open to all age groups. In its second year, the theme of the event is #SheRiseWeRise: a message to men that they grow too when when women find their wings.
Bhavik Mehta, Co-founder, UACTIV, said the idea was to “break the fear barrier.” “Women feel insecure to go out alone, especially at night, or to dress the way they want to. We decided to challenge the situation and come up with a run at night.” UACTIV, which is one year old, looks at a community-based approach to make sports and fitness engaging through social networking.
In its second year, the run will see participation from the Mumbai police and celebrities like Rahul Bose, Shabana Azmi, Monica Dogra, Yasmin Karachiwala and Cindy Jourdain. Over 100 girls from slums across the city and the Akshara Centre will also participate.
Dr. Nandita Shah, founder and co-director of Akshara Centre, said, “When young women feel safe around the city, it builds confidence in society.” Akshara Centre has been working for women’s empowerment, safety and gender equality for the past decades, she said, and has partnered UACTIV for the second time.
Chinmay Mhatre, a participant, said, “I am a part of the ‘Nike Run Club’ where 70% are women. We have heard that it is unsafe for them to run at night. The women have to think before stepping out for night runs, while we guys never have to give it a thought. The women feel safe only when they think of guys as harmless. Thus, it is men’s responsibility to make women feel safe. I participated for this run last year. I thought, why not this year? It’s a great initiative.”
Anvita Dixit, founder of a fitness club at H.R. College and a participant in the run, said, “When I asked a few women if they were interested in joining me for the run, they refused because it was in the night. This itself shows us how anxious women feel about stepping out in the dark.”
Once a woman has registered with Urban Feet, she is allowed to bring along a male runner for free — an attempt to increase awareness among men where the organisers believe it is most needed. Register on UACTIV app or lon on to https://www.uactiv.com/ urbanfeet.html .
