Feminism

 Feminism is such a sensitive topic that some people get offended where as some are always on a defensive mode. Whereas, some of us have been fooled into falling in this trap. I'll tell you where all of this is coming from.

First, let me introduce myself. Hey everyone! I'm an outcome and grown up of middle class family.  Where my mom is a housewife, dad is in government service, brother is working in good IT firm now- all grownup and I am only girl child of my parents who are oldest in their generation- sabka bhaar uthane ka zimma hai inke kandho pe. I was fortunate enough to live with my grand-parents and Nana Nani. My mum was an all-rounder in her school and college days and ended up marrying for the sake of her family to get settled in time. She used to be outgoing in nature but ended up being housewife after marriage again for the sake of her family and her children. However, she always wanted to do something and excel in her career as well. So, seeing her upset and perception of my surrounding of a housewife, I happily bought the idea to study hard and get a good paying job. My brother who has always been an over-achiever was always pampered for getting good grades. Whereas I was mischievous in nature and had the potential but ended up being average student for the most of my academic life. This led to an urge of getting appreciation from my parents by getting a good career. Fueling my desire further to get into high paying job.

Cut short to 25 yrs later, after doing bachelors & masters in technology, I headed for an MBA because there were very less vacancies in government core job in technical field at the time. After doing MBA, got selected for an MNC and started working in two shifts- day and night. Now, sitting at a place far away from home, managing work in warehouse along with laundry, dishes and cooking at my residence. All of this started in the name of feminism. The idea to get independent financially became so strong in my mind that I lost focus on my physical and mental health. Keeping a check on my sanity while juggling between work and personal life has become a challenge. 

Now here, when I get time to relax for one of my week offs, I wonder why 've I landed in such a state? Anxiety building up in my mind has started to show it's effect on my body. Not that I'm writing any of this to get sympathy but it's just a reflection of all the choices that I've made till now and how it has impacted my life till date. Being labelled as stubborn, you will get only reactions from people. It's good that writing is a method where I've to only express and there's no upfront judgement whatsoever. 

While I'm in the current state, I wonder how men feel in this era. In many companies, there's a push to implement policies to get higher number of women in workforce than men. They're getting hired even for the cases where lot of physical work is there. In this patriarchal society, we can observe a shift. But again the question come are we using this shift judiciously? Are we treating men who work along with us at home and colleagues fairly? If we try to do everything then what will be the role of men in our lives? Why is it so difficult to accept the feminity in us? In the name of getting independent, are we losing our ability to trust on our male counterparts?

For sure, women have gone through such a long struggle and we're striving to come out of our past difficult experiences. But should it prevent us from living our lives to the fullest? Won't it be wonderful to experience and enjoy every moment that we live? Learning from men around us while they're adapting to working and contributing at home will be great experience, if we live it with humility and responsibility.

Let me know your views on this in comment section! :)