There is a line in Sanskrit "Yatra naryastu pujyante ramante tatra Devata".That means where women are honored, divinity blossoms there. So in our ancient times, our forefathers have done some brilliant job in depicting the divineness of women & their role in our society.Even our scriptures have placed women in the utmost echelons, describing them as the goddesses of fortune, knowledge & energy.If we consider the role of a woman in our family as well as society, it's very much detrimental, determining the culture an ethnicity expresses.Despite her educational ability, a woman suffuses the culture into a child that later proliferates into values for our societies.
Now let's introduce a word " Feminism ", which is quite ubiquitous in today's environment & our lexicons.Out of nowhere suddenly the word gestated out of some unknown corner & spreading like a contagion in between people of all ages.A term that's quite marketable in today's space.Hence it doesn't need any explanation from my side.But if we are worried about the sudden rise of this word I have a feeling that might be wrong (would love to be wrong).
In our primordial times, there were some specific roles & responsibilities meticulously designed for each gender to find a balance in their way of living.No one really complained about that & everybody followed the way it was designed.But suddenly there was a change in the balance in the system as one side became sacrosanct irrespective of their deeds, trying to coerce the rights of the other.So she was no more the protagonist inside our system even though she performed her duty with utmost responsibility.Things carried on in that manner & here gestated a rebellion( the same situation occurred in our caste system).That was supposed to happen because when someone is not given the value it deserves, that becomes a cause of rebellion.Now it's a competition, " who's the best" with a tagline, "why should boys have all the fun."
So now we have got the term "Feminism".There have been stage shows, movies, TV programmes, debates day in day out creating an awareness about feminism.The mindsets are changing, the opinions are changing & it's really a very good thing to find the balance that we were lacking.Though we have been experiencing the positive effects, I just want to flip & see that with another perspective & raise some of my concerns.But my question is are we moving the right way? Is it catering all the classes? certainly not(what I guess).
There comes my term "Opportunistic Feminism". Opportunistic, as it has been specific to situations & classes. The women of the lower income class don't even know what is feminism.As far as financial independence is concerned she's independent, but it's incumbent upon her to take the responsibility for her family toiling inside the same scenarios.I remember the line of a movie "Nil Battey Sannata" that says "Bai ka koi Sunday nahin hota", meaning there is no Sunday for a maid.The people who patronize them are also women.So where is the "feminism"? Female labors are forced to tie their child to a rock while working, which is quite miserable, but feminism doesn't apply to them. But it's mostly audible with the class enjoying all the amenities & enclosed in their i-world (ipod,ipad,iphone,imac etc).It seems like who are actually crying about equality, lacking an aim in their life.
With the omnipresence of social media, smart gadgets an atmosphere has been created which drags us into a virtual world where we feel people's presence in an abstract manner. Everyone is an expert here irrespective of their age & experience of life.All you need to have a hold on the lexicon & you become a visionary.On-screen female stars, who never hesitate to promote the lethal soft drinks & beauty products for money, use these virtual spaces to create ripples in people's lives with their so-called wise statements for their ulterior motives.Flaunting sexy curves(sometimes without any fabrics) to showcase the confidence they exhibit becomes a stature of feminism.But feminism doesn't cater those who spearhead the space mission(mangalyaan from ISRO) or run a large empire in a very silent manner(like Mrs Indira Nooyi,Chanda Kochhar) or achieve success with their hard work in the real-time world(our sportsperson). Individual struggles & efforts along with the support they get to achieve the summit, are sometimes belied under the large umbrella of feminism.Stories pop up to gain public sympathy & that's where it again becomes "Opportunistic".
It's feminism until used to protect self respect & individual rights. Running away from responsibilities in the name of independence, solitude is not feminism, but narcissism. Flaunting curves with two-pieces is not feminism. Patronizing other's in the name of "Feminism" is not feminism, but dogmatism. Going for uncivilized things just for a sake of competition with the shield of "Feminism" is not feminism, but hedonism. "Femi-nazzism" shouldn't be practiced in the name of feminism.
Though we affirm the atrocities & injustices carried out & still continuing in some corner of societies, we can't negate these concerns.Our society is evolving, things are changing & we should be happy about that.But along with this empowerment, we also need a deep introspection whether it's going the right way or not. Opinions about feminism should be made with broad state of mind & based on solid facts, not conjectures.Otherwise, it'll be just another word that ends with several others with an "ism" in the end, creating a parody out of itself, nothing else.
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