India, May 31 -- In the heartlands of Western Maharashtra, where child marriage remains an entrenched social norm, two women, Deepali and Abhita, are reclaiming their right to education.

In the dusty lanes of rural Maharashtra, two women-Deepali Ravindra Sukale and Abhita Rupesh Dagade-are quietly rewriting their destinies. Once child brides forced to drop out of school, they are now mothers and students, juggling textbooks alongside toddler tantrums and domestic chores. Their stories are not just about individual triumphs but a searing commentary on the systemic failure that allows child marriage and the denial of education to persist.

When Childhood Ends Too Soon Both Deepali and Abhita hail from Solapur district, an area where the no...