An Inspiring Story of Sidhutai Sapkal
Did you ever wonder if a woman can have a thousand grandchildren? The answer is ‘yes’! It is possible because Sindhutai Sapkal is the woman who has made it possible by building a grand family over the decades. Well, these thousand grandchildren are the offspring of the children she had adopted. Let’s get back to Sindhutai Sapkal’s past from her childhood to old age to know how she became a grandmother to a thousand children.
indiatimes
Sindhutai was born on 14 November 1948 in Pimpri Meghe village in Wardha district, Maharashtra. She belonged to a family of cowherds by profession. Hence, the financial situation at home was not very favorable. Above all, Sidhutai was called ‘Chindi’ by her family as she was an unwanted child. ‘Chindi’ is actually a Marathi word which means a torn piece of cloth. Having been born into a poor family, being a girl child on top of that, and then being called a torn piece of cloth indicates how difficult her life would have been.
However, Sidhutai’s father was the only good person in her life who loved her and stood for her as much as he could
For example, back then, it was taboo to give an education to a girl child. Her mother being a victim of this mentality, was against her (Sidhutai’s) education. She didn’t want her to acquire an education as there was no point in it. However, her father wanted his daughter to be educated. So, he helped her go to school as long as he could. Since her mother didn’t want her daughter to go to school, the father would send the daughter away to school on the pretext of cattle grazing. Most importantly, since they were poor and could not afford a slate for Sidhutai to write on, she used to use leaves for the purpose.
After a few years, when Sidhutai was 9 years old, her family’s financial situation went even worse, they married her off to a 20-year-old man who shared the same profession as her father. She then completed her formal education until 4th grade. But, of course, had to quit after a short while. When she reached the age of 20, she had already given birth to 3 sons.
However, one day there was a feud in their village caused because of a man who conned the villagers. Sidhutai had a strong personality and she openly spoke against the man. Though that con man had a strong coin in the village, Sidhutai’s standing up against him worked on the people. As a result, he was humiliated in public. The man didn’t let this go and held a grudge against her. In order to take revenge on her, he fueled her husband against her by playing some tricks.
Sidhutai’s husband started beating her every day and eventually left her when she was nine months pregnant
In fact, he left her to die when she was in labour pain. She did not receive any help and gave birth in an unconscious state. Now there was no one to feed her and her newly born daughter. Hence, Sidhutai went to her mother on foot at many kilometres distance by holding her newborn in her arms. Unfortunately, her mother always being cold-hearted, refused to let her in. She neither gave her shelter nor any financial assistance. Thus, she was left with no choice but to beg. She started begging on the railway platforms to feed herself and her daughter.
It was then that she came across other children who also used to beg at the platform. These were the children who were abandoned by their parents. Looking at them, she realised that those children were forced to live even worse life than her. She heard a voice in her head that said that she needed to adopt those children. Living the same difficult life, she could imagine their pain and struggle and of course, she couldn’t let other children go through the same fate. Not only those she saw on the platform, but she kept adopting every orphan she came across.
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Sidhutai fed her adopted children by begging. It is hard to only imagine how she would have looked after these children despite the limited resources. Above all, she was so much in love and devoted to her adopted children that she left her biological daughter in the hands of the Shrimant Dagdu Sheth Halwai trust, Pune. With her devotion and love for the orphan children, she came to be regarded as ‘mai’ and a social activist.
Most of the offspring of her adopted children are doing very well in life today as some are lawyers and doctors etc. Some of them are even running orphanages and taking their adopted mother’s legacy to heights. In fact, her own daughter is also running an independent orphanage.
Sidhutai after getting a little recognition for her work started giving speeches to earn so that she could use the money for her children
Sadly though, her work did not get recognition on a level where the government would provide grants for her and her children. It is also said that her husband returned to her in his 80s and asked for her forgiveness to which she said that she could now only accept him as her child. From that time on, she always introduced him as his eldest child. Moreover, her noble works have rightly been honoured with more than 700 awards which she invested in her children and their home. There was also a film released ‘Mee Sindhutai Sapkal’ in 2010 which was selected for a world premiere at the 54th London Film Festival.
Sidhutai passed away this year only and she left us teaching that a person can become her/his own weapon of power and the weapon can protect others as well. She, despite, being homeless, poor, and a single woman raised and made many children’s lives. She is the biggest example to all the parents out there to give their children the best lives they can.
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Author: Simran K Parmar
A post graduate in English Literature, secular humanist, critical thinker, an outspoken atheist, follower of equality and a lover of philosophy. craftedfashion94@gmail.com
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