It is highly frustrating (not shocking) that our focus is on all the wrong aspects and the wrong people. Why doesn’t the cruelty of rape jerk us? Instead of viewing the case of celebrity rapes as an opportunity to send a warning to the society by meting out the severest of punishments, we further propagate the idea that rape is fun and is not that bad an affair if caught when money’s there to bail one out!

Parvati, Devdas’ childhood sweetheart, is one unfortunate soul. She is in love with a weak, indecisive brat and also has the misfortune to be born into a family poorer than Devdas’ mother envisages for her son. Humiliated by her love’s inability to stand up to society, she follows the only course allowed to a woman in early 20th century Bengal – marriage to a wealthy zamindar many years her senior. In the novella, she is not even allowed to step out of her husband’s zenana to see the dying Devdas. The story is hence considered a poignant portrayal of society’s constraints.

In order to justify our eccentricities and our “strange” choices amongst themselves, they must stereotype us… put us in a box and tack on a pretty pink label. Hence, society comes up with little unflattering titles for the marriageable yet unmarried women of today (or of yesterday, if she’s past her “prime” i.e. if her biological clock is running out of batteries and she will be soon unable to bear any offspring).

The madwoman as a figure of hysteric rage has the power and most importantly, the potential to rebel against patriarchal modes of oppression – something that feminism as a movement hopes to achieve.

I’ve also noticed that very few parents encourage their sons to talk. Boys are made to shut up and DO, not SAY! How will males ever express their feelings and emotions? Parents boast of their daughters being talkative and their son being restless and mischievous. Watch yourself carefully at the kind of expression you encourage or discourage from your sons.

With a shy smile she walked toward her to-be-groom, thinking that he might be her soul mate.
She served the tea cups with a smile mixed with shyness
And then bent to place the tray on the table.
Her mother regrets that moment to date.

any times the anti-discrimination laws that exist to protect female employees are counterproductive and act as double edged swords. A woman is faced with the choice of either accepting that those gender biased questions will come her way or understanding that if she admits to her employer that she does plan on having a family, her prospects of getting the job or being promoted will diminish. The problem is fundamental, structural and cultural, built upon a workforce that was primarily created for men, by men and designed to accommodate a man’s needs, when a woman’s domain was domestic.

But are women really taken as seriously as men when it comes to politics? It is now that the waters become murky and unclear. Herein lies an undercurrent that smacks of double standards. Italy recently had popular elections which saw a major party (the ruling party nonetheless) fielding good looking women candidates. When accused by first lady of unfairly taking advantage of gender while sidelining real political issues by fielding these “political-bimbettes”, the Prime Minister’s answer was that the Italian parliament could do with a little bit of glamour. This answer is revealing as to attitudes that the political establishment holds towards women as serious political candidates.

Dress codes have been discussed to death in India, and particularly in Chennai. However, considering how they are going on and on, I decided to write about them on this blog as well.
Consider this: a student walks into college, backpack and all, and a guard at the gates tells her she has to go back home and change, or report to some college authority as the case may be, because her jeans are too low, or her kurta doesn’t cover her back pockets, or her capris are too high. Shocking? …