I believe that to an extent the title of this blog gives idea of what this poem could be about...yes, it's about one of our fundamental right...right to equality...a right for all humans..for all citizens in our country...however, not exactly 'coz it is still just a constitutional right which is not in practice for the fairer sex...
Those of you who read my previous post may wish to consider me female chauvinist...however, that doesn't shake my views on gender bias in our society...it exists...is visible...and is a shame for us....no amount of education has been able to teach men that women are not just a means to satisfy physical needs/give birth to their kids/take care of their attire/complete household chores....she is and can be much beyond it....
Shahrukh Khan as the coach of Indian women's hockey team in the movie 'Chakde India" while motivating the team for a match against the Indian men's hockey team asks them to go & let the men know that if a woman can give birth to a man she can do anything....I firmly believe that it's high time that men actually understand this...after all when they can praise Indira Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Kalpana Chawla,Sania Mirza....and if a woman (Pratibha Patil) can be the President of this country..why even today, is a girl child killed even before she can see how beautiful this world is? With old age homes filled with parents disowned by sons why are boys still a preferred child? Why does a guy need dowry to marry a girl who'll be with him thru the thick & thin of life & support him against all odds? Why are girls still expected to play dual roles of a house wife & career woman?
There are many such whys but answers are yet to come...and what's even more sad is the fact that these practices are prevalent not only in the rural/illiterate/low income group population but also the urban,educated and the upper class...Despite having studied quite a bit and having a fair amount of experience of life I still fail to understand why are women the weaker sex? Who/what makes them weak? Why do they need to be escorted if they have to go out of home at night? Who's creating this fear for them & why? I think, it must be some such mind that doesn't have the capacity to think & understand that if women were not there neither would he be....
All said & done..I know things would not change over night neither do I expect them to..however, it needs to be understood & engrossed in the minds of all that it requires a conscious effort to overcome & end this terror....after all wouldn't men be happy if their mothers/wives/sisters/friends had a mind without fear.... WAKE UP MEN..WOMEN BROUGHT YOU IN THIS BEAUTIFUL WORLD...IT'S YOUR TURN TO ENABLE THEM ENJOY THIS BEAUTY TOO :)
I still remember as a student of ninth,
I learnt our so-called fundamental rights…
I learnt the right to equality which made me feel,
All are equal irrespective of caste, gender, religion or creed…
My parents taught me, “Girls & boys are equal”,
& I always took whatever they said to be real..
But as time passed & I grew old,
I discovered the fallacies of what I was told…
No, it was not of my family,
But, because of newspaper that I read daily…
I read how a girl is raped by her stepfather,
& is not helped even by her real mother…
I read how a man burnt his wife for dowry,
& tried to make it a suicide story..
I read how a policeman molests a girl,
& calls his misdeed a mistake in front of people…
I read how a female student is dragged into a van,
& raped by four men one by one…
I read about child marriage, female infanticide & ‘Sati’,
Which fills my heart with pity…
No, this pity is not for the females,
But, for the so-called stronger sex, the males…
For they never have and never can,
Realize the importance of a woman…
They worship their mothers & take care of their sister’s security,
However, all other girls for them are their private property…
Then they ask,” Why do ladies want reservation,
In buses & in parliament, when they want to prove themselves equal to men”…
I take this opportunity to tell all men,
“ We don’t want reservation any where,
We don’t want any special care…
Just give us our fundamental right,
Let us live fearlessly with pride…
Let us do what we wish to do,
Respect us if you want it too…”
I learnt our so-called fundamental rights…
I learnt the right to equality which made me feel,
All are equal irrespective of caste, gender, religion or creed…
My parents taught me, “Girls & boys are equal”,
& I always took whatever they said to be real..
But as time passed & I grew old,
I discovered the fallacies of what I was told…
No, it was not of my family,
But, because of newspaper that I read daily…
I read how a girl is raped by her stepfather,
& is not helped even by her real mother…
I read how a man burnt his wife for dowry,
& tried to make it a suicide story..
I read how a policeman molests a girl,
& calls his misdeed a mistake in front of people…
I read how a female student is dragged into a van,
& raped by four men one by one…
I read about child marriage, female infanticide & ‘Sati’,
Which fills my heart with pity…
No, this pity is not for the females,
But, for the so-called stronger sex, the males…
For they never have and never can,
Realize the importance of a woman…
They worship their mothers & take care of their sister’s security,
However, all other girls for them are their private property…
Then they ask,” Why do ladies want reservation,
In buses & in parliament, when they want to prove themselves equal to men”…
I take this opportunity to tell all men,
“ We don’t want reservation any where,
We don’t want any special care…
Just give us our fundamental right,
Let us live fearlessly with pride…
Let us do what we wish to do,
Respect us if you want it too…”
(27-08-02)
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