Several myths and stories tell of women's resistance to male-dominated society. In any discussion on gender, aspects of patriarchy and caste hierarchy—particularly in the Indian context—cannot be overlooked. Janaki Nair connected these two factors with the legal rights of Indian women. Patriarchy often perceives women as merely sources of entertainment and child-producing machines.

This chapter explores the diverse shades of the lives of Indian Muslim women. Indian Muslims lead lives that are very similar to Hindus in most respects, especially vis-à-vis customs and living conditions. A number of local customs, not inscribed in the Quran, prevail among Indian Muslim—chhatti, chilla, manjha, rasm-e mehndi, chauthi, soem; and some obligations such as aqiqa, khatna bismillah khawani and aameen. Some ashra'f Muslims practised only those customs inscribed in the Quran and Sunnah. The dearth of evidence on ajlaf and arzal girls (save what is available in European accounts and oral history) creates a problem: How are they to be depicted in writing? A number of patriarchal folk songs sung on different occasions reflect how these were celebrated in Muslim families, and what the status of women in society was.