MALAPPURAM: Married off at 14, confined within domestic boundaries for decades, and once ashamed to admit she had studied only up to Class 9, a woman from Malappuram has now rewritten her destiny through education. After 29 years of marriage, Makkaraparambha native Binziya has emerged with a postgraduate degree in psychology, proving that dreams delayed are never dreams denied.
Binziya was forced to abandon her studies when her family arranged her marriage in 1997. One year later, she became a mother. As the eldest daughter-in-law in a large joint family, she was tasked with looking after her husband’s younger siblings and managing all household responsibilities.
“I was still a child. But I had to act like a grown woman because everyone expected me to be one,” she recalls. Education became a distant memory as cooking, cleaning and childcare took over her life. “There was no space for my wishes. My daughter and later my son became my world. But deep inside, I always missed learning.”
A turning point came when the family shifted to their own home. She came to know about the government’s literacy mission and decided to ask her husband if she could attempt the Class 10 equivalency examination. “My husband supported me without hesitation. When I passed with good marks, I cried. I felt alive again,” she says. She went on to complete her higher secondary education next before enrolling for a BA English programme through distance education in 2020.
But her heart was always set on psychology. “I have gone through many emotional struggles in life. Who understands pain better than a woman? I wanted to learn psychology so that I could help others like me,” she says.
The biggest driving force behind her educational pursuit was her own self-respect. “Whenever someone asked me how much I had studied, I felt ashamed to say Class 9. That shame pushed me to continue learning. I wanted to feel proud of myself,” she explains.
Her years of effort finally came to fruition as she completed her MA in psychology. Binziya says she hopes her story encourages other women who were denied opportunities. “There are many women like me in Malappuram who are married off too early and remain confined to their homes. I want them to know that education is still possible.”
She is also proud of the change within her own family. “My daughter completed her Plus-II before marriage. She has finished her degree and is preparing for postgraduate studies. It makes me happy that she will not have to carry the same regrets I once had.”
Binziya now dreams of becoming a practising psychologist and providing support to homemakers who struggle.
