Col Sehra Karaka (Retd) was a pioneering army nurse
Nawaz Merchant
Many Zoroastrians pride themselves on being part of a culture where there is no gender discrimination. Sadly, this perceived equality is not historically accurate. Although both boys and girls are initiated into the religion with the navjote ceremony, there was gross discrimination against women in the 1800s and during much of the 1900s. Despite this, some Parsi women were able to achieve noteworthy feats in many aspects of life. Some, like Madame Bhikaiji Cama, an Indian nationalist, sacrificed her marriage (to an industrialist and British loyalist) for her ideology. Others, like my grand aunt, a colonel in the army, never......