Sulagitti Narasamma, a traditional midwife from Karnataka, spent nearly seven decades helping women through childbirth, drawing on knowledge she learnt through observation, experience and her grandmother, Marigamma. Born on 16 June 1920 in Thimmenayapete village in Pavagada, Tumkur district, Narasamma began learning childbirth practices as a young girl by accompanying her grandmother, who was also a midwife. She later became known as ‘Sulagitti Narasamma’, with ‘sulagitti’ being the Kannada word for a traditional midwife.
She travelled across villages and remote communities to assist women in labour, including difficult deliveries. Her work continued despite social rejection and caste barriers. She was recognised with the Vayoshreshtha Samman in 2013, Karnataka’s Rajyotsava award the same year, an honorary doctorate from Tumkur University in 2014 and the Padma Shri in 2018. She died on 25 December 2018, aged 98. Looking back on her life, Narasamma described midwifery as a sacred responsibility and said, “The work of a Sulagitti was given to me by God.”
Not Just A Profession
Narasamma’s relationship with midwifery began within her family. Her grandmother Marigamma had worked as a traditional midwife in the village of Madakasira after being widowed at a young age. She did not charge families for her services. Instead, villagers supported her with food, clothing and the implements she needed. Narasamma accompanied her grandmother when she went to assist women in childbirth and gradually absorbed what she observed.
The apprenticeship shaped the way she later understood childbirth. She learnt to use her hands to assess the baby’s position and sense when birth was approaching. She also learnt about traditional herbs and plants, including knowledge shared by communities she encountered during her work. Narasamma recalled that she was still an adolescent when she delivered her first baby. Her aunt-in-law, Kanumakka, went into labour while other women in the neighbourhood were away at work.
Narasamma summoned a young girl for assistance and delivered the baby. According to Narasamma’s account, Kanumakka blessed her afterwards and encouraged her to continue the work. Over time, Narasamma’s reputation spread beyond her village. Families travelled to seek her help, while she herself travelled by foot, bullock cart and other vehicles to reach women in labour. She was sometimes called upon for difficult births, including by a Brahmin doctor who, according to Narasamma, sought her assistance after hospital medicines and injections had not helped.
Crossing Social And Geographical Boundaries
Narasamma’s work was not always accepted by the people around her. Some members of her family considered midwifery ‘polluting’ work, while her husband’s income from selling buttermilk was affected as some people stopped buying from him because she continued her work. She also encountered caste-based restrictions. In some upper-caste homes, she was asked to conduct deliveries in courtyards, while strict social boundaries governed who could enter certain homes. Yet Narasamma continued to help women regardless of their caste or community. She recalled travelling through heavy rain and difficult terrain to reach the temporary settlement of a nomadic tribal community near a forest.
The journey took several hours, but she eventually reached the woman in labour and safely delivered the baby. Narasamma also described how she viewed women’s suffering during childbirth as something shared across social divisions. Her understanding of service extended beyond delivery itself. In her recorded consent statement, she spoke about advising pregnant women and new mothers about diet and breastfeeding, while also recalling traditional knowledge of herbs, leaves and roots.
She strongly rejected the practice of blaming women who could not conceive. She argued that responsibility should not automatically be placed on women and said both husband and wife should be considered. Her statement reflected the values she had developed through decades of lived experience. “Under no circumstance should the woman be called ‘barren’,” she said in the account.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Sulagitti Narasamma’s story is not only about childbirth. It is also about how knowledge is learnt, preserved and passed between generations. Her training did not take place in a classroom; it began by watching her grandmother and developed through years of experience within the community. Her story also shows how care can cross boundaries created by caste, geography and social convention.
At the same time, traditional practices and community knowledge should be understood responsibly alongside the importance of safe, evidence-based maternal healthcare. Narasamma herself described her work through the language of service and compassion, saying, “Delivering a woman from labour pain is more sacred than a puja.” Her life invites us to look beyond formal recognition and ask what happens to valuable community knowledge when the people who carry it are no longer there to pass it on.
How can we preserve such lived knowledge while ensuring every mother has access to safe and dignified healthcare?
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