The 'Women In Labour' Podcast: Dr Shilpa Phadke on why women 'loitering' in public spaces is revolutionary

Since 2005, the percentage of Indian women in paid work has dropped from 35 percent to less than 24 percent come, but no one is talking about why. Till we did, and Women in Labour was born (pun intended). A comedic take on a serious issue, the Women In Labour podcast explores a veritable feast of topics related to women, work, family, power, and everything in between. Why do Indian women do the most unpaid work in the world? What’s stopping us from finding our inner boss? Why do we preface our work emails with “I was just wondering…”? And the big one — what’s keeping us away from India’s workplaces? We — Aditi Mittal and Christina MacGillivray — converse with a roster of amazing guests on our podcast in an attempt to answer these questions. *** Episode 4 | ‘In defence of loitering’ Ever noticed how our public spaces and workplaces are full of men? Dr Shilpa Phadke encourages women to take back the city with something revolutionary: loitering. In this episode, we ask how public spaces play a role in women’s commutes, why women have to justify their presence in public spaces, and why loitering could be the revolution we need. Dr Shilpa Phadke is a sociologist and associate professor at the Centre for Media and Cultural Studies at Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. She is also a co-author of Why Loiter? Women and Risk on Mumbai Streets, an absolutely seminal text about how women access public space in cities. Listen to the episode here. _**Listen to more episodes here**_