No real narrative for women in 2014??

This appeared in Mumbai Mirror....

                           No real narrative for women in 2014?

More than six decades have flown by in a blink. We have Elections 2014 in our backyard. And so far, at least, I have not really noticed any narrative for the women of India. Isn’t that sort of dim ? Night after night, the nation watches mainly men thundering away on assorted panel discussions that deal with political issues of every hue. The expressions on their faces are suitably grim ( I miss Manish Tewari’s supercilious smirk ) as they dissect what went wrong in Muzaffarnagar ( come on, chaps, we all KNOW what happened there!  But do any of you know how to fix it?). The economy and its ding dong condition ( “Oooooh! Sensex close to a 3-year high. Thanks Uncle Sam!”) is tediously analysed on biz channels, often by chirpy young things wearing startling shades of  lipstick. Then there are the heavy duty interview/ issue based programmes anchored by our tv star presenters ( male and female). Since their thrust is to generate fiery exchanges via an aggressive, confrontational approach ( I long for the full on attack mode of the  original – Karan Thapar at his fiestiest), the topics are picked accordingly. Right now, one cannot escape Narendra Modi. And here’s the interesting bit: he is the only neta to be actively courting the female vote. Ever since my spoof on Raghu, the RBI Guv appeared in ET,  and got everybody’s knickers into a right royal twist (that was amusing!), I have been inundated with requests from other publications to ‘do a Raghu on Modi.” No chance! I was informed Modi had won a recent poll conducted with middle- aged house wives who had declared him their ultimate heart throb. Good for the house wives and good for Modi. Count me out of this one.

To his credit, Modi has been overtly courting the female constituency in his own State and launched several initiatives which, on paper at least, sound positive, pro-active and most crucially – possible. His ‘Mission Mangalam’( launched in 2010) and the ‘Sakhi Mandals’ are designed to create livelihoods for a million women over the next five years. Understanding the cultural dynamics of  Gujarat, these self- help groups are transforming lives, albeit slowly. When Modi addresses rallies, at least a few of his bombastic utterances sound female- inclusive and in sync with women’s expectations. The rest of the political big wigs behave like women don’t exist ( except as rape victims), and nearly all their reference points are stubbornly male.  Amazingly enough, the three , four or five heavy weight Devis in the political sphere have breezily ignored issues that concern India’s female population. They go into strident mode only when  a tragic Nirbhaya case or a spate of horrific gang rapes galvanize the country. One rarely hears Sushama Swaraj, Sonia Gandhi, Jayalalitha, Mayawati or Mamata Banerjee, invest any real time or thought on women specific concerns. This is not just short sighted of them, but also rather dumb. One doesn’t really expect or even want special concessions, but it is a reflection of the indifference of the ruling class that not a single leader has bothered to make women’s welfare a key issue so far.

The female rupee has already impacted the economy in a significant way. If our money counts, shouldn’t our minds? While emotive subjects like curtailing violence against women have been taken up by a few political parties( no matter how clumsily), the lives of women in a wider perspective remain side lined and ignored. This is really where Rahul Gandhi comes in. Forget the poor fellow’s Kalawati episode (yes, I know that’s hard!). Forget his more recent roti-for-every-Indian speech (the Baba meant well, and at least he didn’t promise pizzas to poverty stricken villagers ). It’s an interesting head-to-head contest between two bachelors now. How they woo and court the ladies may turn out to be the biggest differential in the months ahead. Both should look at hiring teams that are tuned into the specific needs of today’s woman – rural and urban. The guy who’ll walk away with the female vote will be the one who doesn’t talk down to us. Word is out that both the bachelor boys are working on pumping up their sex appeal  - getting more in touch with their feminine selves. Which is fine, I suppose. But the thing is, we aren’t looking to bed them. We want them to work for us. Huge difference!

Spare our bodies....

This appeared in The Week...

                     Spare our bodies….

I am writing this just a few hours after the critical verdict ( Nirbhaya case). And asking myself in a somewhat cynical way – does it matter? Even if the rapists / butchers are given the death penalty, will the rapes end? I think we are deluding ourselves by pinning all our hopes on one very critical judgement. And we have fooled ourselves into believing the mindset in India will alter dramatically after Nirbhaya’s killers are given the severest punishment. This is simply not going to happen. And here’s why : Rapists in India are as varied as our culture itself. They come in all shapes, colours and sizes . There is no standardized profile of a rapist. The urban rapist is no different from the rural rapist. A man in a well cut suit is as much of a rapist as that petty criminal clad in rags. A husband can also be a rapist. So can a brother, father, grand-father, uncle, cousin and son – no class barriers here. Rape takes place within the four walls of a home, at the work place, inside a hotel room…. or on the street, in a moving bus, at an abandoned mill. The rapist can be a colleague in a swanky corner office, or the shabbily dressed watchman of  the building. Often, the rapist is a person the woman knows and trusts. With her life. She is still not spared.

Rapists rarely stop to think about the punishment that awaits them once the nasty business is over and done with. Most rely on the woman’s silence to protect them from the law. A victim’s silence is the rapist’s best insurance against getting nailed.  And here we are talking about reported cases. There are millions of unreported rapes which feature repeat offenders. Do those men ever imagine they’ll be exposed some day? Nope. They are super confident it’s the woman who will fear exposure far more and keep mum forever. So, even if our laws are changed overnight, the crimes against women will continue unabated. Because it is our society that is guilty, not just the individual rapist. What can be done about that collective guilt? Where does one begin? At home, is the general opinion. Worth a go, if we can forget the alarming statistics involving domestic rape. Can we? Should we?

The other theory talks of shame. Especially the shame society imposes on the victim. Social workers tell us to free women of the stigma of shame. Others insist on the survivor’s identity being made public. We urge women to look the world in the eye and carry on with their lives sans shame. But, for starters, how does one explain the meaning of  ‘shame’ to a three- year- old little girl whose tiny body has been ripped apart by a brute? What do we say to that 15- year- old villager whose ‘virginity’ is sold to a 70-year-old widower? How does the concept of  lifting the veil of shame enter the picture when the woman has been gang raped in public?

The truth is, we are all struggling to find solutions to this scourge, when there aren’t too many. Rape is one of the original sins, as ancient as the other seven. Rape goes hand in hand with a sense of entitlement and power. Rape is about violence, not sex. And the men who commit it, are often convinced they are well within their rights to go ahead and violate women. Educated, elite men commit rape as casually as street goondas. So, it’s clearly not about the college degrees you possess or the cars you drive. It is not about an enlightened upbringing, either. Some of India’s most ‘cultured’ families have shielded rapists and damned the survivors. To talk about raising baby boys with the ‘right values’ has become an annoying television cliché. I cannot believe any family actually ‘endorses’ or encourages rape. It’s a daunting scenario, no matter which way we look at it. And please let’s not talk about chemically castrating rapists  stoning them in public, or adopting any other medieval form of  justice. If crimes against women have gone up dramatically, it is because of a set of altered social circumstances that we are still not comfortable with. The elephant in the room has a name and identity. The creature can best be called an ‘empowered woman’. Today, most women are empowered in their own unique way. Even the impoverished, illiterate ones. They know who they are. And what they want. The day rapists realize they can rape a woman’s body but not her mind, heart and soul, perhaps the futility of their vicious acts will finally sink home. And our bodies will be spared. This is more my prayer than a real hope. Is the Almighty listening?

End for the rapists... but rapes go on.

This appeared on the front page of the Mumbai Mirror today....

                        Death to rape…. or rapists???

So, the four will hang. When? Where? Don’t ask. The only thing we know right now is that the Judge, Yogesh Khanna, took under ten minutes to announce what India had anticipated. The second he finished reading out the short judgement, spontaneous applause broke out inside and outside the court. Frankly, I was a little sickened by that. The ghastly rape and murder of an innocent young woman was horrific enough. Then came the applause. I have to add here that I am opposed to capital punishment. Having made my position clear, let me explain why the public’s reaction distressed me. It was a grim case to begin with. For nine long months we had hungrily fed on gory details about the crime – which of the men did what, who did it first, why was a metal rod involved, what did the rapists actually do with it, did her male companion watch all this, how come the juvenile rapist turned out to be the most sadistic, did  Nirbhaya, a paramedic, lose consciousness at some point, for how many hours were the two victims lying stark naked on the road after being flung out of the bus…. and  some even more intrusive queries that cannot be printed in a family paper. Were we genuinely concerned about their pain … or acting plain voyeuristic? The girl was dead. Did it matter how precisely she had been sexually assaulted? Is our society really that sick? We refused to spare the memory of a woman who’d suffered what no human being ( man or woman) ever should. We just blabbed on and on…. demanding a death sentence…baying for the  blood of Nirbhaya’s killers. Hooting and howling like crazed beasts ourselves.

Tomorrow, we’ll demand these men are hanged in public. We will talk idiotically about ‘closure’ ( as if there can ever be closure in such circumstances).We will speak airily about the death sentence sending out a strong signal that will deter other men from committing such a heinous crime in future. Even as I key this in, just a few short minutes after the judgement, there must be an equally ‘heinous’ rape taking place in some part of India – perhaps in your own backyard.What has changed?  If and when Nirbhaya’s rapists swing, do we really want to participate in the actual hanging, even as bystanders? Come on, which country are we living in? And in which century? Next we’ll start stoning criminals to death at Flora Fountain, and attempt to justify the barbarism on the grounds that public stoning discourages crimes. That is absolute rubbish! Even in countries that accept this medieval style  of delivering ‘justice’, the crime rates are comparable to the rest of the world’s.

To call Nirbhaya’s rape, the ‘rarest of the rare’ is in itself misleading. Every rape is just as terrible. In this case, Nirbhaya succumbed to her serious injuries. Survivors (male and female) will tell you, they die a little every day they are alive after being violated. Nobody ever ‘gets over’ rape. There can be no real closure. Judge Yogesh Khanna must have faced a tremendous amount of  public pressure, no matter how impartial and objective he tried to be. He is human, after all.If every future rape judgement is going to be measured against this one, we are asking for trouble. It raises a very disturbing issue in a larger context. As it is, the judiciary seems to be in charge of India (just as well). If the judiciary starts taking its cues from public sentiment and emotional issues, we  too will start behaving like we are in a banana republic – let the mobs decide! This is dangerous in the extreme.

Four men will go the gallows soon. So be it. One juvenile from their gang will walk free a few years from now. So be it, too. And the violence against women will not abate. I certainly won’t say ‘so be it’ to that! The fight must go on. But in a more meaningful way. Let’s revisit dated laws and demand change. Constitutionally. And quickly.

Meanwhile, can we please keep that uncivilized applause on hold?

The asli Chennai Express...

Dandiya Raas, anyone?

This appeared in Asian Age...

                            Who’s ready for a round of Dandiya Raas…?

Navratri is round the corner, and there must be feverish activity in Modi-land. But I wonder how locals will celebrate these nine days of feasting and festivity given the somber mood in Gujarat right now? Is anybody ready for Dandiyaa Raas ? Or will the dhols be silent this year? And will the dhoklas remain uneaten? There are far too many party poopers pouring cold water on planned celebrations. And one wonders: has the time for divine justice, finally arrived? Events of last week have confirmed what ought to have been evident years ago . But now that  Gujarat’s disgraced cop and encounterwalla, D.G. Vanzara is singing like a canary (popat?) from his prison, there is no place to hide. Provided we are interested in paying attention to the jailed cop’s explosive accusations. The timing of his candid revelations is undoubtedly suspect, according to critics. Who cares? In this case, content is king. And truth is more important than lousy timing. Is the suspended IPS officer (DIG) lying or not? That should be our sole concern. The Modi show has been steadily gathering momentum and Modi’s rocket speed rise to the top has happened (“Modi is so dynamic… he is the only person who can pull our country out of the mess… look at what he has done in Gujarat… he is so organized…he means business…. even the foreign press is saying so”). But, as the Gujaratis themselves say when all else fails, “ Javaa do….” In other words, “ Let it go…”  Moral issues, be damned. They would like to bury Godhra and carry on like nothing major happened in 2002. Is the rest of India ready to forgive, forget and move on?  Young voters are in a total flap : No Modi. No Rahul. Then, who?

Well, the dice is loaded against Modi right now. The final straw was the arrest of a perverted ‘Godman’ called Asaram Bapu. With Vanzara connecting the dots as only a cop can, and clumping Modi with the depraved Guru (“Why didn’t Modi save Asaram?”), we now have a tricky situation to deal with. Heaven knows how many more dirty secrets will emerge from this scandal, but one thing is clear – Modi’s band baaja baraat moment is temporarily on hold. Shrewdly, Modi has been quick to announce his decision to serve Gujarat till 2017! No suicides reported so far! Vanzara has cooled his heels for seven long years in jail ( along with 32 other cops), charged with extra judicial killings (read : staged encounters). These seven years , he claims, were spent in cleaning up his soul, thanks to the spiritual guidance given by his Guru ( Asaram). Vanzara has suddenly woken up to the startling discovery that his ‘God’ ( Modi) has feet of clay. With his strongly worded 10 page letter spelling out his disillusionment with Modi and Modi’s henchman Amit Shah ( BJP campaign head in Uttar Pradesh), Vanzara has drawn attention to the netas’ complicity in the encounter killings. He accuses Modi and his men of more or less ordering loyal cops to go forth and murder (“ we simply implemented the conscious policy of this government.”). But Vanzara himself expresses zero regret for what he did ( if he had moral issues, he could have resigned and exposed Modi back then). Modi and Shah will no doubt pooh pooh Vanzara’s letter. They will probably declare him insane and recommend psychiatric treatment. If the Congress also decides it isn’t worth its while to invest in Vanzara, he will rot in  jail , and soon, everybody will forget about his existence. Disowned and discarded by his political bosses, this self-styled ‘desh bhakt’ will become another minor irritant, a pesky mosquito, easily swatted by his mighty opponents. He himself may become the victim of a mysterious encounter in prison. And that will be the end of the story.

For a police officer to be in such a sorry position is indeed a shame. But for that same man to admit he has been Asaram’s ardent disciple for years, is a bigger disgrace. The Godman’s dirty trail in India has not changed over the decades ( remember our desi Rasputin, Dhirendra Swami, and his absolute hold over Indira Gandhi?). Today, there are several Asarams running the God business like an industry. Their track records are pretty similar. There’s no business like God business in this part of the world. And if one digs a little deeper, nearly all the top ‘Gurus’ plying this trade have criminal records. But such is our pathetic surrender to humbug , we refuse to take action against their known criminal activities.Why? Because all of them have powerful political patrons. It’s a convenient arrangement. And there is one hell of a lot of money involved. Money that is rarely accounted for, much less audited. Those ‘ashrams’ ( super luxurious palaces) are protected by private armies that keep outsiders at bay.  It is inside these very ashrams that unspeakable crimes are committed. Yet, nobody dares to move against these fake Gurus. Insulated and protected, these villains in robes continue to cheat the gullible . Asaram’s case could be the turning point in India’s fight against so-called Holy Men and Women.  Most start their lives as petty thieves, small time conmen, serial molesters, till they move up the ladder by preying on powerful people in search of  spiritual salvation. Vanzara was one such believer/ sucker, who was convinced he’d be saved by Asaram …and Modi. Vanzara killed in the name of religion. That’s his ‘alibi’. He also killed because he was instructed to do so by his political mentors. Today, Vanzara has been deserted by both  -  the netas he did it for, and the Godman he believed in. It’s all over for Vanzara. There are many more villains like the jailed cop. But there is only one Narendra Modi. What do we do with him?

Shuddh Desi Hypocrisy...

 Ganpati Bappa Morya....

                                                                           ***********

This appeared in Mumbai Mirror...

                   Shuddh Desi Hypocrisy…

The movie’s title is sexy and provocative (“  Shuddh Desi Romance”). The teaser promos were promising, too. The print ads flashed all sorts of  authentic sounding statistics ( “73% Indian men believe that women who smoke are characterless…”). Now to watch the film and see how right/ wrong they’ve got it. Often, the premise is perfect,but the pulse isn’t. Phut! That’s the end of the story. I caught a couple of tv interviews with the young stars, and smiled indulgently at their enthusiastic , breathless responses to the standard dumb questions. “The romance in this film is totally real!” declared a newbie…. Right! Of course, it is honey. And I wondered what exactly she meant by  ‘real’? Romance in today’s zamaana …. and real? The film’s makers claimed to have arrived at these startling statistics after conducting surveys across 40 cities in India. Let’s take their word for it. Assuming they really did take the trouble to quiz thousands of youngsters ( no numbers mentioned), are we surprised by the findings? I certainly wasn’t. The concept of romance these days is a lot like contemporary politics – it’s all about numbers, equations, setting, jugaad, manipulation, popularity, approval ratings, “Likes” on FB, canvassing, switching camps, offering incentives, false promises, rivalry, back stabbing, name calling. There is nothing ‘shuddh’ about either – romance or politics. Sigh….

I conducted my own personal research, and the findings of my small survey echoed the sentiments of the movie’s promoters. Scary but true. Here’s another gem : “80% Indians feel couples who live together are ‘loose characters’.” Bang on. There was another one about Indian guy’s and their attitude to virginity ( they all want to marry one). Bang on, again ( pardon the lousy pun).This is of a piece. And in a way, all the rough stuff we are living through in our metros is directly linked to these findings. Our cultural conditioning is so strong,blinding and binding, we can see these ‘eternal truths’ in motion every single day and in every which way. I am an incorrigible eavesdropper. I love over hearing comments in public spaces like airports and stations, where clumps of  strangers kill time together,watch television in a desultory fashion and pass idle comments on whatever the channels are showing – be it mythologicals, news, soaps, reality shows, panel discussions. If I close my eyes and  just focus on these conversations, it could well be my grand mother or great uncle holding forth. Yup. The antiquated views expressed don’t seem to have moved an inch beyond the last century. Which is why despite all the posturing and condemnation, honour killings are accepted if not directly condoned by a vast majority of urban Indians. A ladki’s izzat and honour remain tied to how “shuddh” she is. Or how ‘shuddh’  society thinks she is ( like she is a tin of ghee). If she also projects ‘desi’ vibes, she is home and dry. Young men in our society do not have to conform to any such standards. Though being ‘Shuddh’ in terms of showing respect to elders, is considered a male virtue. Being desi for guys means wearing kurtas to family functions and dancing to Bollywood hits at a friend’s sangeet. For women, ‘shuddh’ also includes being a strict vegetarian, and not ‘taking’. As you must know, when an aunt looks suspiciously at you and demands, “Do you ‘take’?” she means just one thing : “are you a drunken slut who smokes, eats meat and sleeps around?” I love society’s code words! There are some things that are deemed so terrible, one cannot articulate the nature of the awful deed. A woman who smokes will be identified via mime….  someone will puff an imaginary ciggie and whisper, “woh peeti hai…”  Of course, such a woman can never become the bahu of a ‘decent’ khandaan.Well you can keep your decent khandaan. Some of us are unashamedly ‘indecent’. Hum log khaatey hain, peetey hain … we ‘take’. Kuch problem?

In an age of ‘halkat jawaani’, it’s time to abandon hypocrisy and embrace reality – shuddh, unshuddh, desi or not.

 Game?