Motherhood and Childfree Choice: Accounts of Indian Childfree Women

Motherhood is considered to be the central part of being a woman in the pronatalist culture. However, an increasing number of women in India are rejecting and challenging the dominant norms of motherhood. In this context, I draw on empirical work exploring the meaning of motherhood and childfree choice among childfree women in India. In-depth Interviews with ten childfree Indian women revealed that they challenge womanhood being equated with motherhood by constructing a separate identity. Their childfree choice is reconstructed as “natural” whereby they question “natural maternal instinct.” The feelings attached to motherhood extend beyond one’s gender and biological motherhood status and include feelings of fear too. The construction of “motherhood” and “mothering” by participants aligns with the dominant image of motherhood and values of intensive mothering that exist in society. The meaning behind childfree choice includes emphasis on one’s own identity, exercising reproductive choice and freedom.