Exploring Childfree Choices in Society's Pressure to Have a Baby (2023): Contesting Societal Expectations of Womanhood and Motherhood

This article explores childfree issues in Society's Pressure to Have Babies (2023)-a short film from India displaying the contestation between traditional and progressive gender roles through the main character, Chandni. Traditional gender roles conflate womanhood and motherhood, whereas progressive gender roles indicate that womanhood is not necessarily inextricably linked to it. This study sheds light on the complexities of becoming a childfree woman, particularly for those who live in a patriarchal society. This qualitative study utilizes textual analysis and the theoretical frameworks of gender, patriarchy, and postfeminism. The results showed that Chandni, who chose to be childfree, felt unfree, pressured, and bound by negative societal stigma. She was considered selfish, useless, unwanted, and imperfect. Society often perceives childfree women as diverging from their expected roles and traditional gender expectations and views them as disruptive to social structures. Her choice is perceived as a threat to the continuity of families and communities, as well as the sustainability of the state. Additionally, the woman depicted in the film represents the postfeminist ideals of independence and autonomy. Although the character expresses a sense of freedom and self-sufficiency through her professional achievements and access to human rights, her position within broader cultural and societal frameworks remains constrained by enduring biological essentialism. Her identity as a woman is fundamentally linked to reproductive expectations, reflecting the entrenched belief that women are inherently designed for motherhood. This research is important for articulating gender equality, particularly regarding women's rights.