Gul Panag: Equal access to opportunity is what defines gender equality

Gul Panag, Shelja Sen and Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan share their thoughts on the topic "Lover, friend, son, husband creating a more equal world" at the India Today Woman Summit 2014.

The lack of gender justice in the public sphere, where there is tacit acceptance of discrimination against an entire section of society, takes the struggle to a whole new level.

The fight for equality aimed against a deep-rooted prejudice perpetuated through every sphere of social, cultural and economic life needs to take on the dimension of a crusade.

Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan, Author and blogger: Admittedly, men and women are physiologically very different, with varied strengths and weaknesses. Women manual labourers, however, bust that stereotype.

Shelja Sen, Child and adolescent psychologist & family therapist, Children First: Despite being a child psychologist, I struggle to understand my son. But, I am pretty much clued in on what is going on in my daughter's head. The fact that I have been through similar experiences makes all the difference.

Granted there is a difference between the capacities of  men and women, but the limitations imposed on women should be of their own making and not that which society dictates.

E.g. women should not be pre-emptively excluded from the field of combat simply because it is considered 'unsuitable' for them.

Apart from the physical aspect, neurologically as well, men and women are wired differently. There has been some dispute over whether in fields that do not require physical prowess, women can compete on an equal footing with men. Over years and across fields, women have been breaking this myth and coming out on top.