Disclaimer – This entry does not intend to offend or criticize any entity/religion, nor is it intended to hurt any ones belief and feelings in any way.
It was one of those weekends when I hardly get about one good minute for my own self. I had been out straight since Friday night, and when I got home on Saturday evening, I had a friend calling from the parlor, saying the ladies are already there and waiting. I rushed.So there was this Muslim girl and her mother waiting. I sat with both my palms stretched out, thinking mother and daughter would be painting henna on my palms. Turns out, only the girl was going to do this. Her mother was there to merely escort her!
At any given point in time, I have a hundred things to daydream of. AT LEAST. So as this long, arduous task of keeping my hands stretched out continued, I dreamed a lot, about my kids, their kids, n then everything that I wanted to do n blah blah. After about an hour when I had touched the tip of almost every desire that I ever had, I looked into my palms - and WHAT!??!! We were not even done with one side of one hand! The mehendi was beautiful though. I had run out of things to daydream off, so I found myself (quite annoyingly) staring at the girl sitting next to me, totally engrossed in painting my hands. She hadn’t spoken a word! How could she not have said anything yet? I stared at her burkha, and was tempted to ask her how she could bear the heat.
Anyways, just to strike a conversation I asked her how long she had been doing this, and all that crappy stuff. I knew what I wanted to ask. I just turned to take a peek at her mother, she was mumbling away to herself, so I grabbed the chance to ask her – ‘Apne kya padha hai? Aap naukri nahi karna chahte?’ (What have you studied? Don’t you want to work full time?) She told me she has done her graduation, and many computer courses, but her brothers wouldn’t allow her to work. I uttered something through my clenched teeth and said ‘Apke bhai aapko yeh kaam karne dete hain, par office nahin jaane dete?’ And quickly she replied – ‘Unko pata nahi’. Just to pursue her interest, leave alone career, she had to have the permission of her brothers, when she herself was probably as old as I am. I was appalled! Comparing her with me, I was feeling helplessly pitiful for her, that she has not even the right to make her own decisions. Would she ever step out and see what the world is like, without her mother accompanying her? I know this is probably very small to you, when you read it, but I couldn’t imagine being caged like that, with my brothers telling me what to do. I wanted to say a lot of things… but I just didn’t!
I don’t know when our country will rise beyond all this!
