Warriors of the Night

We name our daughters Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati; we worship the divine feminine power in the temples but oppress, repress and even attack the feminine power amidst us. That is the irony in the way India sees its women.

After the safety of the daylight fades, women are seen as easy prey by the predators of the night.

We mark the nine nights of Navratri, the festival of the goddess, by celebrating the dedication and valour of nine real-life women who brave the challenges of the night to pursue their dreams.

PART - 9

Heroic Fire Fighter

The Fearless Fighter says she finds happiness in helping people in distress

Ankita Ghadigaokar, 29, Fire Fighter, Mumbai Fire Brigade

She was once taken to a building collapse site as part of her training. A seven-storeyed building had collapsed in Mumbai’s Bhendi Bazaar like a pack of cards. Some were dead, and some were trapped under the rubble. Looking at the disastrous site, Ankita Ghadigaonkar, 29, almost repented her decision to become a fire fighter. However, once she managed to help rescue one of the trapped residents, she assured that her choice was perfect. “When I saw the delight in the eyes of the relatives of the rescued person, I felt satisfied that my efforts were not going in vain. I was very happy that I was contributing to a great cause.”

Hailing from Kudal in the Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra, Ghadigaonkar came to Mumbai to become a cop, however, she landed up in Mumbai fire brigade services. She has been into this profession for the past seven years. “Right from day one, I have always done a night shift. My parents supported my decision. My job is to stay on call. Where there is a major fire, or an accident, or a building collapse, or a pigeon or any animal being trapped somewhere; When I get a call, my job is to rush to the spot along with the concerned personnel and equipment,” she says Ghadigaonkar said that her first day was also a nightshift and she was posted at Byculla Fire Brigade service centre.

She said that the co-workers and staff have always been supportive and she never had any unwelcoming experiences while at work. However, she pointed out that travel used to get scary in the initial days. Ghadigaokar said, “We never had pick up and drop facility. I am a Kalyan resident. There was a time when I had to travel back from Matheran. When I used to board the train at 1 am, the compartment used to be empty. That travel used to be very scary. I was under the constant threat of strangers barging into the train and harming me. Not a single guard would be there. By god’s grace no untoward incident has taken place till date. However, a possibility of an unfortunate incident during that train travel couldn’t be ruled out.”

Ghadigaokar’s husband and family are supportive of her work. “Interestingly, everyone wanted a working woman, but at the same time, their expectation was that she must be available as per their convenience. Many rejected me because I was always assigned a night duty. Finally, I met my husband who was very mature and understood my professional commitments very well.”

Talking about the rising crimes against women, Ghadigaokar advises that all the women should know how to call the emergency services and have these numbers saved. “I have all the relevant contact details of CRPF, police, RPF saved,” she says. She advises women to also stay in touch with relatives about their whereabouts so that when in crisis, they can reach out for help.