Guneet Monga’s journey has been nothing but inspiring. The woman who has produced popular Hindi films such as ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’, ‘Masaan’, ‘Pagglait’, etc. had no connections in Bollywood when she arrived. She was an “outsider”, as they call it. Thanks to her networking skills, she built connections and produced work she could be proud of. And today, she is a successful film producer.
View this post on Instagram
Guneet Monga took to Twitter to share the story of her mother, Amarpreet Kaur, who passed away in 2008. She was an extraordinary woman, from what we gathered from Monga’s tweets. Her mother fought patriarchy every day to make Guneet independent.
The other day I met a distant uncle of mine at a wedding. He came up to me and said I am so proud of you and in return I said to him, thank you for buying world book encyclopaedia from my mother 25 years ago! He was so surprised that I even remembered… pic.twitter.com/8yiK1jM0y9
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
Guneet’s mother was married into a house which was allegedly toxic. Her in-laws had also asked for a ton of dowry during her marriage.
Here is a real life window into my mother. She always wanted me to be independent because she was not. Very early in life she was married in a house that did not value her. They asked for a ton of dowry and was a toxic household. She did everything to protect me.
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
From fighting to let Guneet go to an English medium school to selling encyclopedias to pay for her fees, Amarpreet Kaur is the definition of a strong woman.
I was young and voiceless but I remember everything. She fought for me to go into an English medium co-ed school.
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
One day when I was 12, my parents and I had to leave our ancestral home because of property disputes. Post that my mother started working to pay for my school fees. She sold encyclopaedia books, I used to be fascinated with them but we could never afford them.
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
I remember the joy on her face when she sold a book set, it was a big big deal back then. She then went on to teach tuitions at home and also did home business of Hyderabadi pearls.
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
If this was not enough, she used to go to wholesale market in Sadar bazaar and buy deodorant and small daily use house hold items and sell them at a shop in Kalkaji. To top it all she also cooked the best food for us daily!
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
Guneet thanked her mother for making her what she is today, despite the problems that came their way.
In her own way, she fought patriarchy, became independent and is my hero for life.
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
I wish there was access to therapy back then because I have only grown to articulate gaslighting through her experiences, she was constantly told she is not good for anything, but here I am her proof, her dream. Because of her, I am ❤️
— Guneet Monga (@guneetm) May 8, 2022
Salute to women like Amarpreet Kaur who fight a regressive society every day for their families and themselves!