Woman defies tradition as she works as cremator

Twenty-nine-year-old Subina took up the role at a crematorium in Iringalakkuda Mukthisthan in Thrissur district. She is proud of her job and she did not have an option.

Thrissur: Unfazed by criticism for defying tradition, a Muslim woman in Kerala has been working as a cremator facing serious risks as the pandemic rages.

Twenty-nine-year-old Subina took up the role at a crematorium in Iringalakkuda Mukthisthan in Thrissur district and she is proud of her job.

Subina says she often feels strongly that 'she is a woman, and a Muslim' as she goes about her work which is traditionally the job of a man, but she has a family to think about as well.

Her father is bed-ridden after a fall while cutting trees. Earlier he had five surgeries and the situation in her family is grim. Being the eldest, she also shoulders the responsibility of marrying off her younger sister, but fortunately, her husband Rahman always stood by her.

When she was asked if she was scared about handling corpses, Subina just smiles - apparently suggesting that she did not have an option.