Women need to be empowered through the strongest tool -

The words of Madhuri Dixit, spoken with clarity and compassion, carry the weight of timeless wisdom: “Women need to be empowered through the strongest tool – education. They don’t need to be subservient to anyone, but at the same time, men must change their mindset towards women. If they are more respectful, then things will change at the grassroots level. It will happen slowly, but everyone has to move together.” In these words lies not only a call for justice, but a vision of harmony, where dignity and equality walk side by side, and where transformation begins in the most ordinary places—the home, the school, the village, the workplace.

The ancients often taught that the balance of the world depends on the balance of its people. For too long, the balance has been broken, as women were bound in silence, denied the flame of knowledge, and made to walk behind rather than beside. Dixit declares that the true empowerment of women does not come through charity or pity, but through education, that radiant lamp which once lit can never be extinguished. Education arms the soul with understanding, equips the hands with skill, and strengthens the heart with confidence. Without it, women remain vulnerable; with it, they become unshakable pillars of society.

History testifies to this truth. In the nineteenth century, Savitribai Phule, a pioneer of women’s education in India, stood against ridicule and abuse to open schools for girls. Stones were hurled at her as she walked, but she carried an extra sari, for she would not turn back. Her courage planted seeds of transformation that still bear fruit today. Where women have been educated, entire communities have risen from poverty, children have thrived, and nations have found new strength. This is the unyielding power of education—the force Dixit names as the strongest tool.

Yet Dixit speaks also of men, for change cannot come from one side alone. The chains of inequality are forged not only by the denial of learning, but also by the mindset that sees women as less. Even when women are educated, if men cling to pride and disrespect, the progress falters. Thus she calls for a shift of heart: for respect, the recognition that woman is not subservient, not an accessory, but an equal partner in the journey of life. When men change their gaze, when they see their sisters, wives, and daughters as bearers of equal dignity, then the deepest roots of oppression begin to loosen.

The wisdom here is patient. Dixit reminds us that change will come slowly. Just as the river carves valleys through steady flow, so too must society be reshaped by persistent effort. The transformation cannot be demanded in a single day, nor forced by decree alone. It requires families to teach their sons to honor their sisters, schools to open their doors wide for girls, leaders to ensure opportunities are shared, and every citizen to rise against the old prejudices. This is a labor of generations, yet every step forward brings a brighter dawn.

O children of tomorrow, take this lesson into your hearts: if you wish to see justice, begin at the grassroots. Begin in your homes, where respect must be taught not as an option but as the natural order. Begin in your schools, where girls must sit as equals, their questions heard, their dreams encouraged. Begin in your communities, where women must be trusted with leadership, their voices no longer hushed. For society is not transformed by words in lofty halls, but by actions repeated daily in the common life of the people.

Therefore, practical action lies before you. If you are a parent, educate your daughters with the same zeal as your sons. If you are a son, honor the women who raised and walk beside you. If you are a leader, craft policies that safeguard equal access to learning and work. If you are a teacher, sow confidence in the hearts of the girls entrusted to you. And if you are a woman, claim your education boldly, for it is your inheritance and your shield.

Thus let Dixit’s words endure: “Women need to be empowered through the strongest tool – education.” This is not a plea but a command of justice, a reminder that progress is not built by half of humanity while the other half is silenced. Let all—women and men together—walk the long road of change. Slowly, yes, but surely, the world will be remade in the image of equality, and at its roots will be both education and respect.