On Your Own Terms

Aparna Mohan, 46, who lives in Bengaluru, is turning traditional gender roles on their head. She is the head of her household that consists of her old and ailing parents. “We always get to hear that you need a guy to take care of the home. There is always doubt on the potential of women to manage work and home. But that’s not true,” says Aparna, who has a brother living in another city. Aparna works as a technologist at a private firm and makes time to take care of her ailing parents—her father, Brijendra Mohan, 81, has cancer and needs constant care. “My mother (Nirmala Mohan, 73) is also old. Neither of them has any pension. But I enjoy the experience of being the bread-earner and taking care of my parents, single-handedly,” says Aparna, who was married for a short period several years ago. Women are increasingly assuming the role of breadwinners in...