Like, follow, fear: Punjab's women take on patriarchy, one reel at a time

Indian Express

5 hours ago

Written by Kumool Abbi
The death of popular Punjabi YouTube influencer Kamal Kaur Bhabhi, also known as Kanchan Kumari, has sparked a complex debate spanning religion, gender, migration, and morality. It reflects the tension in traditional societies like Punjab that are caught between entrenched values and modern transformations. But this incident is just the tip of the iceberg. It exposes deeper fractures within a state in crisis.
Post-Green Revolution Punjab is a shadow of its once-vibrant self. Agrarian distress, marked by declining returns, groundwater depletion, crop failure, soil salinisation, rising indebtedness, and farmer suicides, has driven marginal and small farmers along with agricultural labourers out of farming. The myth of Punjab as a prosperous agrarian state has faded. As the rural economy shrinks, families are increasingly turning to the secondary and tertiary sectors for survival.
Amid this economic downturn, a subtle social transformation has been taking place, largely among the poor and Scheduled Castes. These communities, despite their vulnerability, have quietly altered the position of the girl child. Once devalued, daughters are now more likely to be born, nurtured and educated. Punjab's total fertility rate, at 1.6 according to NFHS 2019–21, is lower than the replacement level.
This decline is linked to urbanisation, migration, enforcement of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, and improved female literacy.
The 2011 Census showed female literacy in Punjab at 70.73 per cent, higher than the national average of 64.6 per cent. Among Scheduled Castes, female literacy stood at 58.33 per cent. These figures mark a quiet inversion of patriarchal norms, especially in poorer households where daughters are increasingly seen as assets.
But this shift is not without complications. Girls from economically weaker backgrounds still face structural barriers. Higher education is often inaccessible due to safety concerns, limited mobility, and family preference for educating sons. Many women, after basic schooling, seek work in an oversaturated informal sector, often migrating to towns or city outskirts. There, they enter new public spheres, grappling with both opportunity and risk.
At the same time, the image of Punjab's young men has undergone a tragic transformation. Once seen as vigorous, hard-working farmers, many are now perceived as idle, directionless and addicted to drugs or alcohol. The decline of male economic contribution has pushed families to depend increasingly on their daughters, who are also withdrawing from agriculture. The Periodic Labour Force Survey 2024 shows that the female labour force participation rate for ages 15 to 29 declined from 45 per cent in January to March to 44.1 per cent in April to June.
Unemployment among young women stood at 21.8 per cent, compared to 14.7 per cent for men. The work participation rate was just 15.7 per cent for women, compared to 56.1 percent for men.
This growing female agency exists in contradiction with the patriarchal structures that still dominate Punjab. As women step into offices, markets, the gig economy, and increasingly onto social media, they challenge traditional norms of honour, shame, and sexuality. Modernity and globalisation have created space for self-expression, fuelling a sense of individuality, aspiration, and desire. Punjab's large diaspora further complicates this, exposing families to global values while reinforcing strong caste, ethnic, and religious ties.
For many subaltern women, social media offers an alternative economic strategy. According to the NITI Aayog's SDG Index 2020–21, nearly 84.3 out of 100 people in Punjab were internet subscribers, with 61.2 per cent of women having mobile phone access. Unlike middle-class women producing 'respectable' content, these women often turn to YouTube, Facebook and Instagram for monetised self-expression. Cringe content and soft-porn appeal in global digital markets can translate into income. Algorithms reward sensationalism, driving creators to push boundaries. Figures like Kamal Kaur Bhabhi and Preet Jatti reflect this shift.
These women often use cultural codes to satirise patriarchy, drawing in male viewers while mocking the gaze that seeks to control them. But this digital transgression provokes backlash. The subverted male gaze produces anxiety over the loss of control. Women, seen as male property, are suddenly visible, vocal and economically independent. In response, men try to reassert control, often through violence or extrajudicial means justified as 'moral cleansing'.
Such reactions are not just personal but social. Honour becomes collective, and the merging of reel with real fuels moral panic.
Patriarchal dogma, often backed by religion, seeks to censor, contain, and silence. The remarks by influencers like Ranvir Allahabadia and Samay Raina only underline the urgency for regulation.
A framework to protect women, minors and other vulnerable groups from obscene content is necessary. But equally important is understanding that these moral panics mask deeper anxieties about agency, autonomy, and the shifting gender balance in a society struggling to adapt to change.
(The writer is Professor, Department of Sociology, and Director, Population Research Centre, Panjab University)