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Everyday women discuss what they have to cook for their husbands and kids. But they never talk about what men will cook for us. Why, I ask them!
It is always assumed that women have to cook for their husbands. Every woman just assumes that the man cannot cook, or chop or clean the kitchen. I just laugh as I find this completely ridiculous. Women talk about how educated and qualified they are. They say they love their independence. They talk about gender equality. But then these same women, when it comes to working in the kitchen, claim that men cannot function in a kitchen.
Again I am appalled. What is the difficulty in cooking a dish? Men operate heavy machinery and they can’t use a knife to chop vegetables? They can use glass test tubes and dangerous chemicals to form new chemicals which are used in industries like the health sector, but they can’t measure out spices and stir vegetables on the gas stove to make a dish? Seriously, today one gets masala packets which need to be just mixed with the meat and vegetables and left to cook. How hard can that be? I again pause and laugh.
Sometimes we women don’t realize how we are spoon-feeding our husbands and purposefully not letting them cook. We teach our daughters to not just dress up as princesses. We talk about how girls should play football and cricket, and not just play a pretend house game. We talk big, and then go back home in the evening, and rush straight into the kitchen to cook for our husbands. Why do we then teach our daughters about being independent and pursing any activity they like? Why this dichotomy? Who are we fooling here? I smirk now in frustration.
Cooking should not be considered a burden or work exclusively for women. The men should pitch in and help. Come and step inside our kitchens. It is simple chemistry to cook up a meal. How about frying some potatoes in hot oil?
The most elite five star restaurants mostly have men chefs. If you look at the culinary world closely, you will see that even today, even in progressive countries like the USA, women are struggling to establish themselves as professional chefs. They complain of harassment in professional kitchens. It is the men who rule these kitchens which are equipped with some of the most complicated and expensive ovens.
Some say that women cannot work for a continuous period of 10-12 hours in the kitchen and work under extreme pressure. But at home, before guests are scheduled to arrive, we women toil and work the whole day to prepare a buffet of dishes. We wipe the sweat from our forehead and cook. Why don’t we expect the husband to come and help us?
We hear people getting excited when a man says he loves to cook. But if a woman says she does not know how to cook, people are shocked and aghast. Why do we encourage such comments? Why don’t we reply that why should every woman know how to cook?
And if your husband knows how to cook, then everyone will say how lucky you are! In my house, my husband has learnt to cook when he was a bachelor and living in the USA. He loves to cook. I also love to cook. We take turns in cooking as I honestly get tired of eating my own cooked meal every day.
I think it is a chore that should not face discrimination. Every person should decide on their own whether they want to cook or not. And to all the women in the world, please ask your husband to cook. Why should the woman of the house always have to cook? Even research says that men who can cook are more attractive to women!
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I love to write on women's issues. I strongly believe that every woman is capable of being more than just a homemaker. They are the leaders of our world. They can multi-task more read more...
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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