Being Her

In most men, here I don’t quantify how big, but there lies a chauvinist, which dictates his conscience how he is better of the two genders. It’s not a general implication that I am placing most men in this category but just an instinct I am drawing attention to.

It’s a male dominated society whose perceptions and strength have forced a view of womanhood to be nothing, but a curse. So many years of evolution, so many years of independence but this country still possess an age old “suppress women” psyche. Here when she puts a question mark on her security, they put an exclamation mark or rather a full stop on her liberty. On her liberty to clothe herself, to move around, I am surprised they let her breathe without restriction.

It is the woman who gives birth. She is the one responsible for the continuation of the species. Without her, the newborn cannot hope to survive. How easily is this fact overlooked nowadays? What she is capable of feeling, both emotionally and physically, can’t be understood by men. She is made strong enough to endure the most painful task of giving birth.

But she is still quoted as the weaker of the two genders, why? Because she sheds tears? Or basically, because she is in a position to feel something so profound that Mr. I-Never-Cry can’t?

In India, the glorifying personification of womanhood, the Goddesses, are worshipped but the significance in existence of women, demeaned. Why the double standards? The partiality done between a baby in pink and the one in blue is known to us all. Determination of the gender of the foetus is a crime here while in western world it’s a ritual to know. Throughout history, women have fought for their rights in different societies of the world. But in India we are still fighting.

Since ages fairy tales have been passed down which portray beauty of womanhood. It has always been our culture, human culture, to respect women. It’s just been forgotten today, deliberately or inadvertently is not an issue, that it needs to be imbibed into everyone’s heart and soul is.

Mihika Naik
Y14 Undergraduate, The LNMIIT

Acid Attack

ACID ATTACK. There is no need to explain its meaning to anybody. It has become so common these days that it just looks like another slang. Are you angry? Do you want to take revenge? Do you just want an easy and effective weapon? Go for acid. Is it how you would describe it??

Many of us would explain that it’s a social evil, a curse on the society and some more of the well read and said phrases like these. But, seldom have we given it a deep thought. Acid is not just another liquid. It’s a fire. A fire that burns the body of the victim, the soul of the victim and the dreams of the person are turned into ashes. It spreads to the victim’s family and all the happiness goes into the state of oblivion.

I agree that the true beauty is of the mind and thoughts, and not physical. But none of us we can deny the fact that our personality contributes towards building our self confidence. We live in a society where our appearance matters a lot. Or else how would you justify people using plastic surgeries to either fix their slightly crooked nose or get a clearer skin. But the acid attack victims live with the pain and the humiliation they feel. Do we see the lucky surviving victims of acid attacks around us everyday living a normal life? The answer is no. Either they stop stepping outside into the open world due to fear of judgment or use a veil to cover themselves. They are just pushed into a life full of darkness. Don’t we all use a mirror at least once in a day to check if we look good? Of course, we do. This is normal human behavior. We all want to look beautiful. But for them, mirror is another medium to bring back the dark memories.

The fact is that that there are many people who help acid attacked victims monetarily and even give them moral support. The more important question here is, FOR HOW LONG. For how long will we keep ignoring the problem? It’s not about what we do later. WE HAVE TO STOP THIS. We need to grow as human beings. You, me and all of us. No sane reason can ever justify a sin like this.

Sonali Gupta

Y14 Undergraduate, The LNMIIT