She writes...
It is not surprising to see so many women coming out from their closets now and writing about the horrific experiences that have happened to them in their lives. Please dont get me wrong, i am truly and completely a part of this revolution. This post might be disappointing in a way for some as i dont have any such gory incident to be narrated here. Atleast nothing too specific that i could share. But does that make me a lesser victim? I dont think so.
As a school girl, i too used to travel in these death buses. Taught to dress "decent", Not to talk about groping as it made me look dirty, that if a guy gawks at me, it is my fault that i provoked him (by making myself seen by him, apparently). He is the prince of India, you see.
"This" happens. EVERY girl in India knows that this happens. We have all lived with it. So many women, so many stories. Now.
I am more than confident that if it comes to, "Has it happened to you?" question, every other girl you know has a story to say. It has taken us this long to realise that this disgusting reality is the true story of our 'mother' nation. This is our dirty secret. We need shaking cover stories in newpapers and TV channels to bring this bare truth to our faces. Isn't it utterly shocking that every girl in this nation has a story of sexual harassment and yet we have chosen to live with it in the country that calls itself oh-so-proudly a 'democratic'.
So what do we do now? The government is running out of statements to make. Protests are on and off. We have some sections of people demanding a martyr status for the girl. Some are outrageously asking for a Bravery award to be awarded to this girl. How intelligent. I am surprised by the intellect of these people.
To all these megaminds, all i have to say is, WE ARE ALL DAMINI'S. We are all Nirbhaya's. Award us all , every woman who has lived, survived and died this torment. Make us all martyrs. Damini is not one person, it is a symbol. Damini did not fight a war, she was fighting for her dear life. Damini is not a matyr, she is a Victim. A poor helpless victim.
Because the truth is, On Dec 16, Six animals were on a bus. If not her, it was another girl.
Let me throw some light on a very real incident that i witnessed. Yesterday, i was travelling in a local suburb train. The station was heavily crowded, i manged to get into the Ladies compartment. My husband not knowing that it was ladies compartment got into the train behind me. There was hardly 10 seconds for the train to kick off and at that very moment he realised that it was the ladies compartment. He risked a chance, got off the train, ran to the adjacent compartment which was packed as hell. Lucky he managed to get in. The ladies section was light and had some space to sit and breathe air. All subsequent stops, huge crowd again. And now what i see, at all stops, men started getting in. Around 40 to 50 men got into this compartment. Knowing VERY well that it was a ladies section. I saw these men boarding the train as they slowly clogged the entrance. Just minutes ago, ladies were able to move around freely and now they had to pass the great big man barrier to get on and off the train. They had no shame no remorse and they knew we were not going to complain. Several of these men were gawking at the seated woman. Ah, so much meat. As if the women were items on their window shopping spree.College girls shrugged. A Young mother hesistated to feed her crying baby. Women now sat upright and held their stuff closer. Women adjusted their dupatta's. These men were just looking, not raping. So technically, they are at no fault. But you all know the look, dont you?
After i got down from the train, i asked my husband what was the fine for men travelling in ladies compartments. He said "If police spot them, then its Rs 50, else its a free comfortable ride". Repharse - Free and entertaining ride.
Now, Imagine if the fine was Rs 5000. Would a man dare to get inside? Imagine if police officers were posted at every stop 24/7 to monitor such cases. Would a man dare to board? This is just a very simple example of how useless our system is as-is. Am not even talking about groping or rape or harassment here. This is the day-to-day reality that we see.
No punishment, No fear.
No fear, No remorse.
Punish, Punish the bastards who do wrong. Punish the men who exploit women. Punish them badly. Punish them so much that other rogues dont dare to think. Enough of this soft country bullshit. Rapists are not men, they are pure blooded animals. Even a gun shot would give you instant death, what these men do, leave us women bleeding for life.
To all the men i ask, as an Indian man, dont you feel ashamed to know that India is not a safe country for women. Dont you want to kill these animals ?
Be a man. Being a man is being a friend to your woman.
They say, Woman are free today. Let them be.
We can't rely on government. They dont give us answers. We can't rely on police. They are not around when we need them. Take the system in your hands and do the correction.
I speak to today's generation. I appeal to my friends who are going to become father's tomorrow.
Teach your daughters to be independent. To be bold to speak about the injustice that happens to her. Teach her that she is not at fault for such crimes, that she is as pure as can be. Teach her to keep her head high and walk on a lonely road without fear. Teach her self-defence. As a father, brother, husband, boyfriend - Help her fight.
Teach your sons to respect woman. Teach him not to gawk at girls who chose to wear the dress that they like. Teach him not to tease and scare woman on the road just to feed his ego or show off to his friends.(Trust me, educated guys from the so-called good families do this even today). Teach him to love woman. Teach him to promote equality. Teach him that the movies that preach Good Women are "traditional" are bullshit. Teach him that woman are just like them and not under them. Teach him to fight the crime when he sees it happen. Teach him to be a Real Man.
The time is NOW, the world finally knows our dirty secret. Nothing can be done to hide it anymore. Dont just say, 'Is desh ka kuch nahi hone wala hai' (Nothing good will happen to this country).
Bloody, be the change.
It is not surprising to see so many women coming out from their closets now and writing about the horrific experiences that have happened to them in their lives. Please dont get me wrong, i am truly and completely a part of this revolution. This post might be disappointing in a way for some as i dont have any such gory incident to be narrated here. Atleast nothing too specific that i could share. But does that make me a lesser victim? I dont think so.
As a school girl, i too used to travel in these death buses. Taught to dress "decent", Not to talk about groping as it made me look dirty, that if a guy gawks at me, it is my fault that i provoked him (by making myself seen by him, apparently). He is the prince of India, you see.
"This" happens. EVERY girl in India knows that this happens. We have all lived with it. So many women, so many stories. Now.
I am more than confident that if it comes to, "Has it happened to you?" question, every other girl you know has a story to say. It has taken us this long to realise that this disgusting reality is the true story of our 'mother' nation. This is our dirty secret. We need shaking cover stories in newpapers and TV channels to bring this bare truth to our faces. Isn't it utterly shocking that every girl in this nation has a story of sexual harassment and yet we have chosen to live with it in the country that calls itself oh-so-proudly a 'democratic'.
So what do we do now? The government is running out of statements to make. Protests are on and off. We have some sections of people demanding a martyr status for the girl. Some are outrageously asking for a Bravery award to be awarded to this girl. How intelligent. I am surprised by the intellect of these people.
To all these megaminds, all i have to say is, WE ARE ALL DAMINI'S. We are all Nirbhaya's. Award us all , every woman who has lived, survived and died this torment. Make us all martyrs. Damini is not one person, it is a symbol. Damini did not fight a war, she was fighting for her dear life. Damini is not a matyr, she is a Victim. A poor helpless victim.
Because the truth is, On Dec 16, Six animals were on a bus. If not her, it was another girl.
Let me throw some light on a very real incident that i witnessed. Yesterday, i was travelling in a local suburb train. The station was heavily crowded, i manged to get into the Ladies compartment. My husband not knowing that it was ladies compartment got into the train behind me. There was hardly 10 seconds for the train to kick off and at that very moment he realised that it was the ladies compartment. He risked a chance, got off the train, ran to the adjacent compartment which was packed as hell. Lucky he managed to get in. The ladies section was light and had some space to sit and breathe air. All subsequent stops, huge crowd again. And now what i see, at all stops, men started getting in. Around 40 to 50 men got into this compartment. Knowing VERY well that it was a ladies section. I saw these men boarding the train as they slowly clogged the entrance. Just minutes ago, ladies were able to move around freely and now they had to pass the great big man barrier to get on and off the train. They had no shame no remorse and they knew we were not going to complain. Several of these men were gawking at the seated woman. Ah, so much meat. As if the women were items on their window shopping spree.College girls shrugged. A Young mother hesistated to feed her crying baby. Women now sat upright and held their stuff closer. Women adjusted their dupatta's. These men were just looking, not raping. So technically, they are at no fault. But you all know the look, dont you?
After i got down from the train, i asked my husband what was the fine for men travelling in ladies compartments. He said "If police spot them, then its Rs 50, else its a free comfortable ride". Repharse - Free and entertaining ride.
Now, Imagine if the fine was Rs 5000. Would a man dare to get inside? Imagine if police officers were posted at every stop 24/7 to monitor such cases. Would a man dare to board? This is just a very simple example of how useless our system is as-is. Am not even talking about groping or rape or harassment here. This is the day-to-day reality that we see.
No punishment, No fear.
No fear, No remorse.
Punish, Punish the bastards who do wrong. Punish the men who exploit women. Punish them badly. Punish them so much that other rogues dont dare to think. Enough of this soft country bullshit. Rapists are not men, they are pure blooded animals. Even a gun shot would give you instant death, what these men do, leave us women bleeding for life.
To all the men i ask, as an Indian man, dont you feel ashamed to know that India is not a safe country for women. Dont you want to kill these animals ?
Be a man. Being a man is being a friend to your woman.
They say, Woman are free today. Let them be.
We can't rely on government. They dont give us answers. We can't rely on police. They are not around when we need them. Take the system in your hands and do the correction.
I speak to today's generation. I appeal to my friends who are going to become father's tomorrow.
Teach your daughters to be independent. To be bold to speak about the injustice that happens to her. Teach her that she is not at fault for such crimes, that she is as pure as can be. Teach her to keep her head high and walk on a lonely road without fear. Teach her self-defence. As a father, brother, husband, boyfriend - Help her fight.
Teach your sons to respect woman. Teach him not to gawk at girls who chose to wear the dress that they like. Teach him not to tease and scare woman on the road just to feed his ego or show off to his friends.(Trust me, educated guys from the so-called good families do this even today). Teach him to love woman. Teach him to promote equality. Teach him that the movies that preach Good Women are "traditional" are bullshit. Teach him that woman are just like them and not under them. Teach him to fight the crime when he sees it happen. Teach him to be a Real Man.
The time is NOW, the world finally knows our dirty secret. Nothing can be done to hide it anymore. Dont just say, 'Is desh ka kuch nahi hone wala hai' (Nothing good will happen to this country).
Bloody, be the change.
