Muthulakshmi Reddy

Muthulakshmi Reddy (1886 – 1968) was an Indian medical practitioner and social reformer.

[A large part of her achievements related to her work with a community known as Devadasis, young girls who were dedicated to a temple and groomed into prostitution Muthulakshmi was born to S. Narayanaswami Iyer, the Principal of Maharaja's College, and Chandrammal, a Devadasi. Her father’s ostracism for marrying a devadasi made her acutely aware of the plight of devadasis and inspired much of her future work with the community. However, I want to do a separate post about devadasis soon, so I’m going to exclude much of that aspect of her work from this post, but I’ll link to the devadasi post once I’ve written it.]

Narayanaswami Iyer broke the tradition and sent Muthulakshmi to school, and her teachers were so impressed by her intelligence and passion that they taught her subjects beyond her father-approved curriculum. When she hit puberty, she was expected to leave school, but she continued to be tutored privately at home. When her mother suggested arranging a marriage for her daughter, Muthulakshmi protested that she wanted more than to be a common housewife, and that she rejected the subordination of women to me and the outdated opinion that women should not receive an equal education to me. Preaaach.

When Reddy passed the Matriculation exam she applied for admission to Maharaja's College. However, the principal objected, both on the grounds of her unconventional caste/class background and her gender, when he believed would “demoralize” the boys who would be dismayed if a woman outperformed them (but of course women are the emotional and fragile ones…) However, the Maharajah of Pudukottai was more forward-thinking, and not only admitted her to the college but also provided her with a scholarship to financially support her studies. Her father suggested that she can become a school teacher, the traditional occupation for educated women, but she had bigger ambitions. In 1907, she joined the Madras Medical College, where she achieved a brilliant academic record. With several gold medals and prizes to her credit, Reddy graduated in 1912 to become one of the first female doctors in India. Her first job was as House Surgeon in the Government Hospital for Women and Children in Chennai. 

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In 1914, when she was 28, Muthulakshmi married Sundara Reddy. However, she married him only on the condition that he promised to "always respect me as an equal and never cross my wishes." Her class background necessitated that they be married under the 1872 Native Marriage Act as her caste status (or lack therefore) left her outwith the remit of “traditional” Hindu marriages.

While at university, Muthulakshmi met Sarojini Naidu and began to attend women's meetings alongside women who shared her passions and concerns relating to women’s rights. She was greatly influenced by Mahatma Gandhi and Annie Besant, who persuaded her that her life’s calling was the empowerment of women and children,

Having furthered her studies in England, she gave up her successful practice in medicine in response to a request from the Women's Indian Association (WIA) to enter the Madras Legislative Council. She was elected unanimously as its deputy president. She led the agitation for the municipal and legislative franchise for women.

Reddy enacted numerous social reform, as detailed in her autobiography, My Experience as a Legislator. She provided food and education for female orphans, and she also passed a resolution to establish a special hospital for women and children. The government accepted her suggestion and opened a children's section in the maternity hospital. She recommended systematic medical inspection of students in all schools and colleges, run by municipalities as well as other local bodies.

As president of the All-India Women's Conference, she passed a bill for the suppression of brothels and the immoral trafficking of women and children. A home called Avvai Home for girls and women was opened through her efforts to provide shelter to those rescued from brothels.

She also opened a hostel for Muslim girls who were excluded from many Hindu-run establishments, and provided scholarships for Dalit girls. She recommended to the government that the minimum age for marriage be raised to at least 21 for boys and 16 for girls (why this should still be different for each sex I don’t know).

She also started the Cancer Relief Fund which is today a cross-India institution.  She became the first chairperson of the State Social Welfare Board. Her work on the Hartog Education Committee, which incorporated a study of educational progress in India, allowed her to travel extensively and examine the state of female education throughout India. 

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In 1926 she was admitted to the Madras Legislature as a member of the legislative council, becoming the first woman to be a member of any legislature in India. When she was elected as the deputy chairperson of the legislative council, she became the first woman in the world to become the vice president of a legislature. She was the prime mover behind the legislation that abolished the Devadasi system and played a keen role in raising the minimum marriage age for women in India.

Reddy was active in setting up of several toilets and women's toilets and initiated measures to improve the medical facilities given to slum dwellers.

During her address at the Centenary celebration of 1935, she declared her desire to start a hospital for cancer patients. The foundation stone for Adyar Cancer Institute was laid by prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru in 1952. The hospital, which started functioning on 18 June 1954, was the second of its kind in India. Today it treats nearly 80,000 cancer patients a year.

She also worked for the Tamil music movement, Tamil Language development and she protested to increase the salary of Tamil teachers and writers. She was the editor of the monthly magazine 'Sthree Dharumam' for women run by the Indian Women Association.

She continued to fight for her cause till the end of her days and never let anything stand in her way, even into her eighties.

In 1930, she resigned from the Madras Legislature as a protest following the imprisonment of Mahatma Gandhi. However, although a devout Gandhian, she largely stayed out of nationalist politics, preferring to focus her efforts on improving health and education for girls across the country. In 1956, the President of India awarded her the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India. She died aged 81, having dedicated her life to saving and improving millions of lives across India.