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These are a few more thoughts of a broken girl, who is just an ordinary girl in a busy world trying to make sense of whatever life offers her. You and me.
There were always things, which only girls should do. Bathe early. Pray early. Learn to cook. Come home early.
Everything about girls had to be early. If we were playing in the field and the boys came, we were taught to give up our games and come home early as the boys took on the field. We were taught to give up our spaces too soon. Boys could wake up late yet they could claim their spaces whenever they wanted. Boys walked out when they pleased. We had timings.
Girls bathed early. Gave up careers early. Married early. Everything about girls is to be early.
These wrong lessons, girls are taught too early.
Everyone lied to girls, when they said, “Your shyness is your ornament, it will save you from all evil,” “Your silence is your dignity.”
When they raped her, she was still the same shy girl. Still they raped her. And because they said silence is dignity, she did not report it to the police.
They again lied, “Acceptance is your virtiue,” So when they burnt her for dowry, she accepted. Called it fate. So many lies, that they teach girls. Not because they love girls. For power, they lie. One who wants to be powerful wants half of the population to be silent.
I won’t be silenced. Not now. Not ever.
My daughter too will speak. And so shall my sister.
We will tell all the lies you taught us. And the burning coal that you wanted us to chew. Now, we will spit it all back. And you will walk will blacken faces.
I will spit coal out. I will speak.
You should stop asking me to smile. I don’t owe you a smile to exist. Stop telling me to look pretty. I don’t owe you my prettiness. My existence does not depend upon how I make my life bearable to you. I owe my existence to no one. I exist because I do.
And nothing else.
This article is part of a series. You may read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.
Image source: pixabay
Proud Indian. Senior Writer at Women's Web. Columnist. Book Reviewer. Street Theatre - Aatish. Dreamer. Workaholic. read more...
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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