Durga Shakti Nagpal, a young officer in the Indian Administrative Services (IAS), was suspended by the government of Uttar Pradesh in north India on July 27. She was accused of risking communal tension by ordering the demolition of the wall of a mosque being built illegally on government land at a village in Greater Noida, close to India’s capital, New Delhi. Amid allegations that she was punished for going after the state’s powerful sand mafia, the president of India’s ruling Congress party, Sonia Gandhi, asked the Prime Minister to ensure that the officer was not unfairly treated.

It was very late in the night when my mother woke me up and asked me to take her to the hospital. She was sweating heavily and obviously not feeling well. We women were alone at home because my brother was out with his friends. I tried to call him but he was out of reach. Instead of wasting more time knocking our neighbors’ doors or calling our relatives to come and help us, I simply took the car and drove to the emergency unit at the nearest hospital.

Why am I asking this question? Am I really searching for an answer to this or am I asking myself something else. I may perhaps find the answer to this at a later stage if I am able to put my finger on the exact pulse of my wandering thoughts. I might or might not have that “Eureka” moment. Nevertheless,  I intend to try. Women Talk Online reader Rachel Bari writes.

Indian filmstar Madhuri Dixit is known for her roles portraying strong women who take on the patriarchal society in India.  Now, she is playing the lead role in a film called “Gulaab Gang,” a story about a gang of women vigilantes in North India.

As an Indian living in Germany, I try to hold on to as much “Indian-ness” I can possibly get. During one of my efforts to try and stay in tune with India, I went to a Bollywood dance workshop in Cologne. My curiosity grew when I found out that a German woman was conducting the workshop.

Which themes made it to the headlines in South Asia this week? What books and films on women are making it big? Click on this blog to find out more and let us know if you think we missed out on some theme you think is really important.

A Pakistani TV programme gives away orphaned babies, a team of young women from India take the third place in a football competition in Spain and violence against civilians has increased in Afghanistan, the main targets being women and children. Read on to know which South Asian women’s themes made it to the headlines in the last few days.