The World celebrates International Women’s Day today, 8th March 2007, and while I sit at home doing nothing more than enjoying my vacations, I wonder at what worth does this day hold for all of us... for the common Woman.
There are news and views all over the TV channels and newspapers about who feels what about women and who has done what for their upliftment, but the great question that arises is which woman are they talking about?
As my maid wiped the floor today, a girl many years younger to me, she asks me “Kya ye TV par nari divas ki baatein kar rahe hain?” (What Women’s Day are they talking about on TV? ) And all my attempts to explain to her what it means and what importance it holds in the ‘World’, she gives me a look that says... You know it’s all useless!
She never saw the face of a school, never got a new dress to wear, never ate a healthy, fulfilling meal and today my telling her that woman is celebrated has obvious reasons to amuse her. And the only thing she says in return is, “Ye sab to aap jaise logon ke liye bana hai.” (This is all made only for people like you).I am sure she feels jealous of me and hates me for what I am, but I am sad for her and for the fact that there is nothing that I can do for her.
We have heard enough about the problems of population, illiteracy, poverty, exploitation of girl child and the MOST common being DOWRY. Today, on such an important day... WOMEN’S DAY, when brands from Ponds to Lycra and Politicians from Sonia Gandhi to L K Advani are so heartily congratulating Women for being women... this little girl, now washing piles of clothes is tensed, for her wedding is planned for next month and her mother has nothing arranged for her dowry. And she knows that she has no chance of acceptance in her in-laws house without the trunks and suitcases.
It does get irritating at times and you so feel you could simply chuck half your income each month and hand it to her and tell her to go to a Govt. school, learn some basics and at least become capable of getting a little respectable job, a class four or something. But I know that money is going to increase her problems rather that decreasing them. The first claim to this money would be of that father who gave birth to her and their relation ended right then, it does live up sometimes when she gets some extra money from any kind woman in the houses where she works. He would use MY hard earned income for his pleasures. The second claim would be of the mother, who would give it all as the fee for her son’s school education, still hopeful that he would one day get serious and start going to the school regularly. And even if this girl manages to keep her money and go to a school, fighting all odds... her fate would be doomed FOREVER... after all who would accept a girl who went to school and can read and write... she would be tagged for life as ‘awara‘ (footloose).
It is sad, depressing and IRRITATING, when the ‘Soul of the Woman’ is going on getting celebrated by the Commercial, Politician and Famous part of the world, while the common Woman’s soul wonders if I am alive or dead?
