by Sahrish Ahmed
from United States
Dr. Kadambini Ganguly was an ambitious woman and revolutionary doctor who changed society’s views. I chose Kadambini Ganguly as my Unsung Hero because she carved the path for women all over the world. She was born in Bhagalpur, British India on July 18, 1861, during the Bengali renaissance, an era of educational, religious and social growth, which had directly affected Kadambini. While at the time, prejudice against women was raging and common, Dr. Kadambini had gone against all odds to prove equality. I look up to her for being hard working, intellectual and brave despite having all the odds stacked against her, and achieving medical advances while standing for gender equality.
I wanted to create this painting in a way that expressed her impact as well as reflecting her hardships. I painted her face, with her hand pointing out to show her confidence and bravery. Her hand holds chains that she’s pulling away at. The chains symbolize the state that the society was in, where women were originally seen as unintelligent and foolish, holding her back, just the same way that those views had tried to hold Kadambini back, But as she pulls at the chains, it shows how she was so passionate that she was able to break free. I drew a book and a stethoscope to represent her intelligence and her medical literacy, which was extremely unheard of at the time for females. I finally drew a sky with the sun and its rays extruding out. These rays of sunlight represented new beginnings and opportunities, which Kadambini had created. Because of her, women all over the country were now able to apply to colleges and get an education.
