Feminist discourse and perspectives of Ambedkar: A case study of Taungya women in Shivalik foothills

This paper analyzes the position of Scheduled caste Taungya women in Uttarakhand in the light of the feminist perspective of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar as a thinker and social reformer in the position of women in the Hindu society. The paper also analyzes the relevance of his ideas in the contemporary feminist discourse on gender equality under social conditions existing in the forest dwelling Taungya community. His main reservation was that gender relations are synthetically constructed under Hindu social order, which shapes the outlook of Hindus towards their women but also moulds women to conform to a stereotype feminine behaviour. Eventually, the paper shall analyse the gender stereotyping existing in the SC Taungya community.