On Tuesday, July 30, 2019, Goggle is paying tribute to Dr Muthulakshmi Reddi—“a woman of many firsts” with a Google Doodle. An inspiration to many, Dr Muthulakshmi Reddi was a surgeon, educator and a reformer who dedicated her life to the cause of gender equality and worked tirelessly for the upliftment of women and children.

Dr Reddi was born on July 30, 1883, in Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu to Narayanaswami Iyer and Chandrammal. Her father was ostracized from his family for marrying a Devadasi. Resisting an early arranged marriage, Reddi took admission in Maharaja’s High School—an all-boys’ school at that time and her admission created a scandal—parents threatened to pull their sons out of the school. Despite the resistance, she completed her studies and went on to study at Madras Medical College—earning the title to become the first female student at the Department of Surgery.

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As a doctor, she challenged the system of “Wet Nursing”—a system in which Dalit women breastfed the children of upper-class women. She later gave up her practice after being nominated to the Madras Presidency Council—she was the first woman Deputy President of the Council thus becoming the first female legislator of India.

Throughout her life, Dr Reddi fought against the prejudices of the society, she was a trailblazer—leading her life by example. She proposed the Devadasi Abolition Bill and interviewed hundreds of Devadasis. When three young girls came to her for help, she started a shelter home, “Avvai Home”—which later became a sanctuary for women from all walks of life. She was associated with educator Sir Philip Hartog and under that committee, she travelled extensively in India to review woman education.

After losing her sister to cancer, she laid the foundation stone of the ‘Adyar Cancer Institute’—it is currently a world-renowned institution and treats about 80,000 patients a year.

For her contribution to the country, she was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1956 by the Government of India. The post accompanying her Google Doodle honours her by saying-“Constantly breaking down barriers throughout her life, Reddi was a trailblazer who devoted herself to public health and the battle against gender inequality, transforming the lives of countless people—especially young girls.”