Woman Power

The tales of inspiration continue to grab our eyeballs even when there is a deluge of negativity both in print media and television. The narratives of corruption, rapes, murder, scandals do not have an element of shock anymore as these have become a staple media fodder. It makes us feel powerless when perpetrators continue to evade the system and roam loose to continue with their acts as very few get punished.

Notwithstanding the ignominies, there are sparks of good deeds that deserve a mention. The feminine power though celebrated for centuries in our nation, has seldom enjoyed the attention it deserves. Every news of brave women who managed to rise, be it a Durga Shakti Nagpal who took up cudgels to wage a war on sand mafia, or celebrities like Sheryl Sandberg who after losing her husband David Goldberg and after a failed marriage earlier, move from strength to strength and inspires a new generation of women to ‘Lean In’

However, there are many faceless women, who are poor and powerless but live a life less ordinary by walking for miles to fetch water for cooking, fight the system against injustice, want to study and rub shoulders with men. The past year has been a watershed, as the government relented to allow the women to fly the fighter aircrafts for the first time! Arunima Sinha despite having lost one leg in an accident managed to scale the Mount Everest. Puja Thakur led the Inter Services Guard of Honor inspected by President Barack Obama during his visit to India. Dipika Pallikal stunned the nation by entering the Top Ten ranking in World Amateur Squash Association, a game hitherto considered a forte of men. There is a galore of achievers of the fairer sex, who raised the bar and was in limelight.

It is time that as a nation we give the women their due and respect. It is not enough to venerate them for ten days twice in a year during the ‘Navratras’ by treating them as angels. Every girl has an equal right to education, work and not be objectified as a sex symbol alone! It is time to relook at the archaic laws that prevent the growth of women. Let us not forget that even our scriptures in which we take immense pride had portrayed Shiva and Parvati as ‘Ardhnarishvara’( meaning that a human being is half men and half women, split in half)! Every act that goes against the tenets of humanity must be abhorred and spreading positive vibes of encouraging women and girl child must become a norm.

PS: This is my post for http://www.youthkiawaaz.com/ and Indiblogger sponsored ‘Spread the Vibe’contest.