The FREE Woman
We all hear tales that make it evident that women in India have been subjugated and subverted for years, their status always secondary when compared to males. In her growing years, a woman is required to sacrifice her dreams and aspirations for her brothers, post-marriage all her moves were controlled and dictated by her husband, and when she turned old she had to follow the commands of her sons.
For years, a woman’s life was seriously caged by the wills of the males within her close circuit or in the society at large. They expected total submission and obedience from her or else she was considered ‘unwomanly’ or obstinate. But the question today is – has the story really changed all that much? Even as we move towards modernization 67 years post independence, are the women of our society really FREE even now?
Myth of a free woman in India
As the waves of the Feminist movement started to take surge worldwide, India too came under its sweep. Some positive impact indeed took place in the fields of women liberation and progress. But after seeing the present rate of violence on women, the question still remains that in this 21st century after all the efforts made to impart the women of India freedom which is their birthright, are they really free?
Our country is one of the world’s largest democracies, celebrating its Independence Day on August 15th each year and claims to consider its women citizens no less than men. Today’s modern women like to think they are free - they are educated and think they have the right to go wherever they want, wear whatever clothes they want, practice whatever profession they desire, follow whatever manner of conduct or behaviour they want. But is that really true? As a modern woman, aren’t you coerced to still move cities when you husband gets a new job, go against your heart to enter an arranged marriage because that’s what your family believes is right for you, have to dress up a certain way in front of people because it’s your family image at stake?
In reality, the concept of the ‘free woman’ in India is still a myth because society puts uncountable restrictions on our choices and snatches from us our birth right; i.e. ‘freedom’.
Being ‘free’ is more of a mental state than a physical one
Being FREE is not a physical state; you don’t have to exert your physical freedom in order to feel liberated and confident of the woman you are. Freedom is a state of mind; it is a mental state that sets us apart from others. It is all about freedom of thought, of emotion, of convictions that really makes a difference. And while in India we women might not be free to behave the way we want and act like the way we want, most of us are not even free to have our own ideas, our own ideologies and our own opinion.
A woman, in order to free herself, first needs to free her mind. Women first need to de-captivate their mind of all fears, feelings of remorse, poor confidence and so on. Freedom is actually about thoughts, emotions and convictions and it indeed can make a large difference. If your mind is free, you can get the courage to assert your individuality.
So first, you need to hold up the mirror to your own selves and discover the ‘I’. Unless you do that how will you establish your presence in this man’s world? If your mind remains captivated, you will fail to see the positivity around you and these male chauvinists will continue to negate your presence and make you dance to their tune.
Why do women in India feel ‘caged’ even after 67 years of Independence?
The progress of the women of our country is deterred seriously by series of mental and social confines that put them into tight fetters. The mental confines could be feelings of fear, low confidence, self-pity, lack of will power, emotional blackmailing, paranoia and countless other psychological issues that may develop due to ceaseless torture hurled on her from the male world.
The social confines that restrict her progress could be illiteracy, low income or poor economic status, dress code restrictions in some parts of the country, discrimination regarding employment, laws against women violence but with many loopholes and so on. These mental and social confines limit the progress of women in our country and often her journey becomes an episode of unvoiced plight.
Thus, even after so many years of Independence our women are not very free; in fact ironically enough they still feel quite caged in ‘independent’ India. We claim of overarched idealisms but our women are raped, harassed, murdered in the name of dowry, eve teased, acid attacked each new day. They are unsecured and utterly scared by the hooliganism taking place around them. They aren’t free at all!
So let’s take a vow this Independence Day...and try to give our women the Freedom they deserve, the freedom that is theirs by birth. If we each decide to change our thoughts and actions, to make a difference and to not think ‘What difference can one person alone make?’; together we can walk towards a brand new India where the women are as free as the men.
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