Even as Muslim women fight for equality and independence in their lives, the story of their struggle brought an audience to its feet at an international film festival in New Delhi. The audience rose in standing ovation for a film called 'Mehram', in which well-known actor Farida Jalal plays a woman who decides to buck the patriarchal system to claim her right to perform Haj.

Under Saudi Arabian laws, women are forbidden to go on the pilgrimage to Mecca without a 'Mehram' or chaperon, who must be a male blood relative. Just a little over a month ago, this paper had reported how activists in Mumbai came together to spread awareness about the gender injustice inherent in the system, and to speak about how it is time for the Saudi Arabian authorities to do away with Mehram altogether.