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Today, more than ever, needs writers who let their ideas run free, to inspire the world. Here is an ode to the writer's dilemma - to be or not to be free?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mrsdkrebs/6812988187/sizes/l
Today, more than ever, needs writers who let their ideas run free, to inspire the world. Here is an ode to the writer’s dilemma – to be or not to be free?
One of the top 5 entries for September’s Muse of the Month writing theme, with the cue “I am no bird; and no net ensnares me” taken from Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre.
A writer is a sensitive thing
Seeing things
Thinking up strange scenarios.
Envisions a story
Others don’t see
Inhabiting a world
Whose reality is remembered scents,
Bursts of forgotten music
Wisps of mist.
The sight
Of the light
As it shines through a leaf
Berry squelch burst of taste.
Emotions felt,
Emotions watched and heard
Situations
What goes through your head
Before you are beheaded?
Who cleans the sword…does anyone?
Soft ephemeral thoughts
May dance onto a page, pinned there by a pen
Or may forever float
Like motes of dust in a sunbeam
Illuminated momentarily.
A writer’s mind
Densely populated
Has no space
For criticism
Other people’s opinions
Poison arrows
For my dragonfly wing delicate ideas.
To protect
My writing
I can either write…and show no one
Or write, as Charlotte Bronte did
Under a pseudonym.
Was her writing so courageous, open and uncensored
Because she veiled who she was?
Is this the way?
In a world where children berate writing mothers
For publicizing emotions and events,
Mothers enjoin adult daughters
Not to touch upon certain topics
Demanding
The strongest experiences
Crying to be voiced
Be censored.
Does a writer have the energy to confront
Mother, partner, offspring?
Should she ?
Or should the burkha of anonymity
Float down upon her writing
Allowing it to be
Fearless and free?
Anonymous out of a dislike
Of being criticized ?
It’s like a mother giving up her baby
For adoption.
But if you must, you must
It’s better than killing the baby.
Or not writing at all.
Let my writing be free.
Pic credit: mrsdkrebs (Used under a CC license)
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People say that women are the greatest enemies of women. I vehemently disagree. It is the patriarchal mindset that makes women believe in the wrong ideology.
The entire world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024. It should be a joyful day, but unfortunately, not all women are entitled to this privilege, as violence against women is at its peak. The experience of oppression pushes many women to choose freedom. As far as patriotism is concerned, feminism is not a cup of tea in this society.
What happens when a woman decides to stand up for herself? Does this world easily accept the decisions of women in this society? What inspires them to be free of the clutches of the oppression that women have faced for ages? Most of the time, women do not get the chance to decide for themselves. Their lives are always at the mercy of someone, which can be their parents, siblings, husband, or children.
In some cases, women do not feel the need to make any decisions. They are taught to obey the patriarchal system, which makes them believe that they are right. In my family, I was never taught to make decisions on my own. It was always my parents who bought dresses and all that I needed.
14 years after her last feature film Dhobi Ghat, storyteller extraordinaire comes up with her new film, Laapataa Ladies, a must watch.
*Some spoilers alert*
Every religion around the world dictates terms to women. The onus is always on women to be ‘modest’ and cover their faces and bodies so men can’t be “tempted”, rather than on men to keep their eyes where they belong and behave like civilized beings. So much so that even rape has been excused on the grounds of women eating chowmein or ‘men will be men’. I think the best Hindi movie retort to this unwanted advice on ‘akeli ladki khuli tijori ki tarah hoti hai’ (an alone woman is like an open jewellery box) came from Geet in Jab We Met – Kya aap gyan dene ke paise lete hain kyonki chillar nahin hain mere paas.
The premise of Laapataa Ladies is beautifully simple – two brides clad in the ghunghat that covers their identity get mixed up on a train. Within this Russian Doll, you get a comedy of errors, a story of getting lost, a commentary on patriarchy’s attitude towards women, a mystery, and a tale of finding oneself, all in one. Done with a mostly light touch that has you laughing and nodding along.
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