Being a Woman in India
So Women's Day has come and gone with the usual fanfare. Celebrities and whoever is worth anything have pitched in their two bytes about treating women with respect, giving her her due, acknowledging her contributions etc. New age guru Chetan Bhagat even had a word of advice for us - he told us not to take undue pressure on ourselves to be alpha women.
So far so good. But the bottom line still remains - have things changed at all for women?
Yes, some of us have indeed secured our freedom from shackles of injustice, illiteracy, and unjust expectations. But the majority of Indian women are still miles away from self-reliance. Why, they are even not allowed to take simple decisions for themselves. What they should wear, whom they will talk to, what they will study, when they will return home, is all pre-decided for them. As far as life altering decisions are concerned, they have their fathers/brothers/husbands/sons to decide their fate.
And this is not only in rural India, or in the cow belt regions of UP, Haryana, Bihar. Ground realities for women in small towns across India are the same. Yes, they have come a long way from their house-bound domestic animal status, but their freedom is strictly conditional to obeying archaic rules. They are now in prestigious colleges, studying engineering, management, etc., but one call from home brings them back to their reality as burdens to be quickly married off. And marriage still means dowry, loss of individual freedom, and domestic drudgery for most of our girls.
Yes, some are bold enough to leave home to follow their heart, but our cities are waiting to pull them apart. Sexual discrimination, harassment, and lack of social support leaves them bitter and cynical.
Why can't we build a social system that allows a woman to blossom into what she is capable of? When women reach the top of the ladder, do they look back and try to make things easier for their counterparts at the bottom rungs? This is something that all women political leaders, chief ministers, heads of organizations, decision makers should ask themselves.
What is the bit I, as a woman, am contributing to better the life of another woman?
So far so good. But the bottom line still remains - have things changed at all for women?
Yes, some of us have indeed secured our freedom from shackles of injustice, illiteracy, and unjust expectations. But the majority of Indian women are still miles away from self-reliance. Why, they are even not allowed to take simple decisions for themselves. What they should wear, whom they will talk to, what they will study, when they will return home, is all pre-decided for them. As far as life altering decisions are concerned, they have their fathers/brothers/husbands/sons to decide their fate.
And this is not only in rural India, or in the cow belt regions of UP, Haryana, Bihar. Ground realities for women in small towns across India are the same. Yes, they have come a long way from their house-bound domestic animal status, but their freedom is strictly conditional to obeying archaic rules. They are now in prestigious colleges, studying engineering, management, etc., but one call from home brings them back to their reality as burdens to be quickly married off. And marriage still means dowry, loss of individual freedom, and domestic drudgery for most of our girls.
Yes, some are bold enough to leave home to follow their heart, but our cities are waiting to pull them apart. Sexual discrimination, harassment, and lack of social support leaves them bitter and cynical.
Why can't we build a social system that allows a woman to blossom into what she is capable of? When women reach the top of the ladder, do they look back and try to make things easier for their counterparts at the bottom rungs? This is something that all women political leaders, chief ministers, heads of organizations, decision makers should ask themselves.
What is the bit I, as a woman, am contributing to better the life of another woman?
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