The ancient Indian practice of “sati” or “suttee” — widow-burning — was banned under British colonial rule in 1829. But in modern-day India, the plight of a woman who loses her husband to death can still be a cruel fate that exposes a widow to isolation and discrimination. In some cases, the woman suffers such a loss of social status that she is referred to only as “it” or “creature”. Dheera Sujan, whose own mother was widowed in India when she was a child, looked into this problem.
Producer: Dheera Sujan
Broadcast: August 16, 2006