Why Weep Behind the Veil?

I’m a girl who belongs to one of the so-called ‘modern’ cities of India. Yes, Calcutta was once hailed as the safest city for women.  But the picture is slowly changing. With the number of car rape cases, or rather, ‘just rape’ cases increasing by the day, this city, like almost every other city of India, isn’t safe anymore.

The clock strives eight, and parents forbid their daughters from stepping out of the house. A girl dresses up in tees and shorts, and is admonished to go change into something more shrouded and ‘respectable’. I ask, how can clothes determine the amount of respect a girl deserves? Especially in a country where men walk around semi-naked? I’m not prodding girls to dress up in mini skirts all the time. That would make me the victim of every parent’s curse. All I’m trying to say is, when a girl dresses up in shorts or tank tops or three-quarters, she does so because..that’s what she wants to wear, not because she means to “provoke” anyone. If a girl hangs out with her friends at a bar, or chats with men, it’s cause she is social and friendly, not because she wants to be driven to bed. Men don’t necessarily need to rape a girl to prove their dominance; they can make her feel threatened and disgusted just by groping her or ogling at her. Cause everytime a man crosses his limits, it’s the soul of a girl he destroys, let aside her body.

With each passing day, the numbers of rape and molestation cases are proliferating. The Guwahati Molestation Case, the Indore case of a man piercing his wife’s genitals and locking them! SICK! Every cell of my body cringes with revolt whenever I think of the fact that I’m residing in such a country where men walk around with a bloated chest even after committing every heinous crime known to the mortal world. Such incidents prove that India is growing into a jungle of uncontrollable, savage men! Men who think of women as porcelain dolls, with whom they can do whatever they want, and whenever they want, without the fear of ever being caught. Why? Cause maybe the country is getting used to reading about such things in a newspaper? Or maybe because girls feel they were born to tolerate such inhuman, sinful behaviour?

We watch Satyamev Jayate and click our tongues at the backwardness and narrow-mindedness of the people of India. But do we make an effort to improve the scenario? We witness brawls taking place on the roadside. But do we take the initiative to stop them?  If media can expose every trivial thing happening on the planet, why not report against hooligans roaming around with dirt ingrained in their heads?

If a girl is taught the right manners, values and the proper social codes and ethics, so are boys.

If girls can maintain their boundaries, why can’t men?
Why is the girl the one who’s always asked to make the sacrifice? Why can’t men, for once, understand the dilemma and feelings of the womankind?
Why should a woman drape herself in a veil? Cause the society will otherwise think its she who aids in arising a man’s sexual nerves? Bullshit!

A country doesn’t become developed through sky-high buildings and air-conditioned malls, it becomes so when the view point of its citizens becomes broad. You don’t need to be a feminist to respect females and fight for their rights. All you need to be is human; to remember the background you come from, to keep in mind that your family too, has female figures. Everytime a girl is abused or molested, it’s the nation that takes a step back. You don’t sabotage a body, you mentally impair the entire female fraternity.

Girls, you’re the most wonderful and delicate creation of God. He crafted you to bring peace and joy on Earth, not to teach you to suffer from the silence of trepidation. Whenever a man or any other human being tries to demolish your standard and reputation, stand up against them, raise your voice and fight for your dignity. Do NOT remain silent. Cause the more you bear it, the stronger they become. Show the world that you are the reincarnation of the goddess of strength and courage, and nobody has the privilege to ruin your life.

Not all men are cruel. It’s a certain section of men that projects the image of barbarousness. We need neither animals nor saints, all we need are humans; civilized and refined, who know how to treat women, who understand their worth. The day the ‘josh mein hosh khona’ concept dies, and the ‘pardey ke peeche rehna’ notion is demolished, that very day we all can proudly say, that yes, we have created a beautiful world. 

Think over what I said. Even if for just a second. Lets try making a difference, even if it's just one letter at a time.

Adios,

Sayantani Sarkar.