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We display a great deal of pride in saying that we are fast moving on the path of modernity. We are a young nation but we are steady on our path to urbanization and modernization. Right from our scientific-medical advancements to satellites that we send in the outer space to even social landmarks like the growth of women in public sector , we boast of our modern achievements. Yes we can by no means do the mistake of denying that we have indeed come a long way in terms of our achievements in many fields be it medical, space research, education or even health but this acknowledgement shall not stop us from coming face to face with the numerous fallbacks that we still have to pay attention to. One of these is the issue of women, here of course I will be reminded of the fact that the plight of women has improved massively and today they can be found almost in all fields working shoulder to shoulder with their male counterparts , they have witnessed a great deal of emancipation in the wake of education. Yes indeed I have no right to deny the achievements that women have made and how the condition of their lot has drastically improved but here I wish to articulate another set of arguments that neither the repeated feminist rhetoric nor the spokespersons of modernity talk about very often. Yes, we have women like Mary Com, who despite many adversities became the only female wrestler to bring medals for all the six wrestling championships, we take pride in talking about women like the recent Durga Nagpal who very fearlessly exposed the sand mining mafia in Uttar Pradesh, risking her life to the cause of the nation. But what about the Indian women who are not Mary Com or Durga Nagpal, what about those women who are mundane, everyday wifes, daughters and mothers? Who have not done anything to attain a medal nor are they very visible in the public domain, what about the rights of these women? It is high time we asked the question, that is a woman only a physical body, is she only the agency less , stupid victim in a deodorant advertisement? Or is she only a commodity of mass consumption in an item song? Why is the average Indian woman seen as a helpless, stupid and powerless victim of patriarchal ethos? In a university campus a girl gets murdered because she made her choice of not marrying a particular male , another is threatened by local panchayats because she dared to choose a career! Why is dreaming illegal for women, why in a world that talks about freedom, a woman’s freedom is not accepted? A woman is seen only as a reproductive machine, and her usefulness marketed through vulgar connotations attached to her personality, she is seen as nothing beyond her body or her biological purpose. The woman also visualizes herself more as an object than a subject, she sees herself as destined to be exploited in the male hands, and the moment her husband leaves her she consumes poison to end her life, is she fighting the inflated male ego or is she helping it to further destroys her? The time has come, women must choose to live a life on conditions that they make not on what their husband, father or son decide on behalf of them, they must remember that a relationship symbolizes companionship and not slavery. If a male torments you, you have a life more beautiful waiting for you, crush the male ego by living meaningfully even when he is not there with you, don’t empower him by ending your life. The woman must first see herself beyond her own sexuality , with sacred spirituality. Ananya Pathak
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