Womenhood -the downslide to stone age...

The two flares has been burning so unusually since morning. Dark thick smoke has already formed a large patch of cloud in the northern part of the sky. The billowing smoke presents a stark reality. The frightening reality of global warming. Those huge ice blocks are breaking with deafening sounds in the far north. If we listen carefully, that sound from the north pole is clearly audible, clear enough to send shock waves across the heart.  No escape. In the recent years, in search of more comfort, big trees were mercilessly cut from the road sides of the Garden City of Bangalore. Here, in search of big money, the natural resources are exploited seamlessly. The tapped gas could not be processed due to some defect in the system. Now the gas that came out from the depth could not go back. So the most intelligent animal on the earth burns it away, as if, no one is the loser in this simple process!

The Global Restaurant threw a French menu to the languishing souls of the Das Island in the night. I am not sure if Camel Roast is a French dish but it was served in the restaurant as a special item. The predominantly meat based food items were not a pleasant thing to look at but the beautifully crafted shapes of animals and birds out of vegetables and fruits definitely were. How marvelous those handiworks were!

The Eiffel Tower carved out of a yellow pumpkin was really the eye catcher. This makes the difference between the human beings and the rest. The skilful hands can make anything he desires. The birds using oranges and carrot were a joyful sight. Once in a week, the restaurant serves country based dinner menu. I picked just a spoon of rice and then mixed it with dhal powder and oil. That was tasty.  La Tamil taste...French delicacies can never match with our humble preparations. Avial for the lunch was very delicious. I took two spoons of it while the rice was only one spoon.

The heavy wind has been rattling my cell for the past few days. Once in a while, the weather becomes so bad. Gusty wind carries dust and sand and also it makes the climate so cold. The wind at times rocks the cell as if it were a cradle. It is enjoyable but at the same time gives a feeling that the box may fly away anytime in the wind. The only confidence is that these accommodations were not made based on the principle of "chalega". Even after twenty years of its installation, these temporary cabins survive the highly corrosive atmosphere. We must appreciate it.

A serious thought 'constipation' occurred in my brain. After jotting this much, I could find no way forward. For many days nothing was coming out of my mind. To top it all, the TV was distracting my mind very badly. There are twelve Malayalam channels on the television. Channel surfing is a good time pass. It helps us avoid all those unreal advertisements and the tear jerker called mega serials. Most importantly, it helps us stumble upon some interesting programmes on an unexpected channel.

 

Anita Pratap

Like that, I just stumbled upon an interview . "Home is the most insecure place for women" -Anita Pratap says on a TV channel. http://www.anitapratap.com/  She says, she was told by a women's activist that 98% of the women are beaten at least once in their life. Shocking but it is true. Dussasans and Govindachamis are there right in the middle of our own society. They, most probably turn out to be our own relatives or friends. Women are running for cover.

 

 Frightening but as the world takes giant leaps in science, technology and living standards, the other half is left out far behind. Anita told one more thing in that interview. She is yet to see a man of true courage. Is it really true? May not be. But she was trying to prick the male ego. Most of the men sincerely believe that they are superior to women. There is no situational or scientific proof to support this belief. Physical strength and the "readiness to outrage her modesty anytime" as he pleases are mistakenly construed as superiority. Man feels insecure when he sees a woman trying to outsmart him. At any cost, he tries to stop her. Physical and sexual assault are the weapons he uses to intimidate her.

The Dirty Picture

Unbearable stereotyping of women in Indian cinema and lately on the mini screens had been damaging her prospects of a decent life. It is shocking to see that women are beaten in the TV serials even after we are into 13th year of 21st century. It was the Indian movies that made rape a monster and glorified chastity as something women must safeguard at any cost.

Women were shown raped at the drop of a hat in our movies. Women were the sole custodian of modesty and they killed themselves when it was brutally assaulted. The modern day cinemas topped it up with ugly depiction of womanhood. The women who donned skimpy dresses and acted as seductresses always roamed around  outside the celluloid with body guards. Here is the National Award winner for best actress for her "acting" in the "Dirty Picture". These women amass plenty of money made out of shameless skin displays. They were never affected by the ground realities. They even dared to term rape as "surprise sex". http://www.indiatvnews.com/entertainment/masala/rape-is-not-crime-it-is-a-surprise-sex-says-sunny-leone-1091.html

The sexually starved men folk in our country found easy access to their urges by attacking the poor unprotected women. Please don't pounce upon me if I make a statement here : A man who watches a present day Indian movie will be tempted to rape!! Some movies are certainly playing a role in such a downfall of morality in our society.  Men in India iconised Amitbh Bachan and Rajini Kanth but they always showed tendency to behave like Amrish Puri or Jose Praksh!!

Man must start accepting his limitations. I believe, there are hundreds of women in our society who are superior to men both in physical and mental terms. Kalpana Chaula, by any means was much superior to at least 80% of men in India.

There are so many widows and widowers living in our society. A close look at their lives gives an insight to their living conditions. No doubt, widows live much better than the widowers. Men always need women in their life for support. When the woman in his life disappears, the man comes to a naught. A widow on the other hand, survives the set back, though with difficulty. To a great extend  she comes back to normal life slowly. Like the poor mother of five children who was featured in a TV reality show, she learns to stand on her own feet. She brings up her children even if it involves a lot of hardships and miseries. In the last, she lives a queen's life whereas in all probability a widower leads a dog's life. Women concentrate mainly on their children's future and men look out for the second marriage! This is the general case. Of course, there are exceptions

I should add this too. Men spend hours after normal time in the office. They bend over backwards to please the boss. They always worry about their profession. Promotions, increments and the chauffer driven sedan...They enjoy everything, more than the presence of the all sacrificing wife and the children who need father's care the most.

 

Women like Indira Gandhi to the ordinary woman like the Kerala girl Amrutha http://newindianexpress.com/cities/thiruvananthapuram/article1466299.ece who challenged hooligans on the street are much above men mentally and physically.  The shell shocked men of the God's own Country are now crying foul. They say, Amrutha took law into her hands, as if men are law abiding and always call police when confronted by troubles!

 

Look at the reality shows. Women do everything that men do. They are never even a step behind the opposite sex. Give them level playing field. Magic will work out. A civilized society is complete when the women in it live in equal terms with men. We can only keep our hopes alive for a better future. In the meantime let us keep our women folks back home under our feet, lest they outsmart us, seriously denting the superiority we acquired by virtue of our birth.  It is true, behind every man's success there is a woman. It is equally true that behind every failed woman there is a husband. Hey, someone is squirming under my feet too, let me look who is that ..!!