Dr Gail Omvedt, 76, American-born sociologist who has contributed to Culturally Correct, came to India in the 1960s as a student of the University of California. She is seen here with husband Dr Bharat Patankar, a human rights activist. (Pic/Somnath Waghmare)

Dr Gail Omvedt, American-born sociologist and Fulbright scholar wrote We Shall Smash This Prison: Indian Women in Struggle in 1979. It recorded her participation in various women's movements ever since she landed in India in the sixties as a student of the University of California. Today, the 76-year-old is an Indian citizen, a prolific writer on Dalit and women's rights and someone who oft-quotes Mahatma Phule and Shahu Maharaj.