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Beauty is defined rigidly in our world, with little place for those who don't fit. Here's an account of the big, fat, and f*gly, who remain ignored, or worse, ridiculed.
Beauty is defined rigidly in our world – fair, thin, tall- with little place for the dark, fat, short ones. Here’s an account of the big, fat, and f*gly, who remain ignored, or worse, ridiculed.
All they could see was a large lump of flesh – obstinate, smelly and lazy. That was all everyone would see. They took her pictures, posted offensive comments, laughed at her face, and applauded at her jokes. She was the brunt of every third joke in stand-up comedy. That was her, a disgusting lump of flesh.
They vouched against racism, against discrimination on the basis of religion, caste, creed, but it was alright to laugh at her. She fit no controversial agenda. It was OK. She was but a lump of flesh.
She had a name. No one knew. They named her Gluttony and expected her to respond at their call. They disguised their callousness behind her gluttony. They disguised their crude words behind her self-loathing. They blamed her for who she was; a huge lump of flesh.
She carried the burden of her cross. Day by day she dragged it as it grew heavier. They even got a fancy name for what they were doing, “Fattertainment”. Media could be creative, and no one blamed the media for flooding them with opinions. She had made poor choices and landed up where she was, they cried. They feared she would create an epidemic. Their fat humour was the best weapon against the lump of flesh.
She would never get into that little black dress hidden in her closet, the one she untiringly tried after every session of a sweaty workout.
The weight bias finally weighed her down. It killed her motivation and it crushed her chances. She would never get into that little black dress hidden in her closet, the one she untiringly tried after every session of a sweaty workout. Her genes had failed her as much as her jeans had. Away from prying eyes, all day, she would try a new regime, a new diet, a new set of exercises. No one would ever know. She would stand for hours in front of the mirror, wondering why everyone else failed to see her as she did.
She had beautiful eyes, she knew. Sadly, only she knew that.
Locked up in her room, she would emanate the fragrance of beautiful flowers. Sadly, only she knew that.
She longed for love. Locked in a room, crushed by their comments, beaten by the unrelenting media opinion, a lump of flesh longed for the love that they all took for granted.
She now rests, in a huge casket. As she disintegrates, like all of us will someday , it was noticed that she didn’t take up much space beneath the earth. They buried her deep, still fearing the epidemic. Filled with bony prototypes of humans created in labs and edited in softwares, this was certainly no world for the big, fat and the f*gly.
Pic credit: Concept image of obesity via Shutterstock
Hi everyone, I am a teacher by profession and a restless being at heart. I am a writer more of conviction, less of vocabulary. My restlessness along with my compulsive desire for learning anything new read more...
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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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