Monika Suri

Z stands for  Zulmat . It is an urdu word , meaning darkness or obscurity . The dark attitude towards a girl starts from her birth itself . Born is not a girl, born is just a child , but she is transformed into a girl by instilling many hard facts and fears in her mind .  Girls speak slowly , girls must  learn cooking , good girls don’t go outside the home at night , good girls dress up properly , girls have to make compromises in their lives after marriage , so all such things are instilled and a child is transformed into a girl and then starts the dark attitude of the surroundings .  Every woman faces many biases and obscurities in her life and is still asked to remain quiet as if it’s part of her beauty package . I have written about many of the obscurities faced by women – Abuse / Bride Burning / Violence / Sexual assault / Foeticide and many others . The question is why a woman of 21st century is still caged in these obscurities ? When will the clouds of Zulmat ...

                                                                        BE YOURSELF O WOMAN ! Woman – whom God has given the role of a creator , makes the first definition of beauty. The womb where a seed finds its place to settle, grow and get nourished , is beauty . The placenta which develops to provide oxygen and other nutrients to the baby inside , is beauty . The umbilical cord which connects your and your baby’s soul , is beauty . Yes you are the creator O Woman ! Nobody else has been given the power as beautiful  to form a  baby from a tiny  seed . You are beautiful as you are O Woman ! And please never ever doubt this , even when some others do . Be Yourself . Talk to yourself daily in the mirror ” Yes ! I am beautiful as I am “ As a woman , you play many roles in your life and live greater number of responsibilities than men . But still sometimes you feel low , the reason may be the daily household stress or some harsh  pointers  thrown at  you being a ...

X stands for X-Factor X- Factor is a noteworthy special talent or quality , It’s an attribute beyond description , something which makes a person unique . A piece of fiction on “X-Factor” At the age of 62 , Today when I was being awarded with “Pratibha Puraskar ” by the district social club , I overheard someone saying ” That lady has an X-factor in her which makes her so special” . The term X-factor took me in my past . The only rosy part in my married life was that I got blessed with two beautiful daughters . To live with their father always was a task that tested my patience and quietude . I never knew my Art College degree would be wasted in such artistic roles like dusting , washing or just  cooking . I was happily playing all the roles of a maid and was sometimes  even being  treated   like the one , although my  official tag was that I was a Home Maker. One day one of my friends Ravita happened to call me after a gap of many years , As s...

W stands for Weakness A piece of fiction –“A woman” as described by her husband She was a kind heart . She always loved me and  my  family . She never boasted of her doctorate although married to just a graduate .From day one of marriage she supported me in my business both physically and financially . She was a kind heart . She stood by me  in the bad times too when my business suffered huge losses . She proved herself to be my better half from all aspects even while my own family denied to support me . She  took care of all the family expenditures , never with a burden . Many times she acted ignorant of my stealing from her purse  for my drinks . She always praised me in front of others , even in front of her parents whom I often criticized . She was a kind heart . She maintained the family peace even when I made the business losses as an excuse for drinking . She didn’t want any bad effect on our infant . She remained calm even on that day when I dared to rais...

V stands for Victim Story of Laxmi from India Laxmi became a victim of acid attack in 2005  when she was just 15  ,  the reason was that she had rejected a 30 year old man’s love proposal.  The incident occured when she was busy shopping in the market . she was rescued by a taxi driver who took him to the hospital. Laxmi underwent 9 major surgeries . Her will power helped and she survived . No doubt the scars would last with her for lifetime but she is making her scars  motivate other acid attack victims .  She has taken the  challenge to fight . She collected 27000 signatures and filed  in the supreme court to curb acid sales in the market .  Laxmi now also runs an NGO  which is dedicated for the acid attack victims.  Laxmi also received International Women of Courage award in 2014 by Michelle Obama . In 2014 she fell in love with Alok Dixit whom she met while working for a campaign . Alok was impresssed with Laxmi’s spirit and the duo decided to be together .  Now the coup...

S stands for Second Sex . By Second Sex , they mean  Women . Now the question is that why is SHE  addressed as the Second Sex ? Why is SHE considered at the second position ? Why is it always HE at the first position ? Is the woman still seen as a secondary thing , a subordinate to the male society ? Yes She is  , she is still trying to find her real existence ,  she bewails of her thwarted existence . She still feels angry when some factors stand in her way , blocking her path to her real independence , success and happiness . A woman is still   juggling for total liberation  Simone De Beauvoir , the French feminist and philosopher has written at length about a woman . She has made a detailed analysis of a woman’s oppressions , the unjust treatments or the mental pressures she has always been facing . It’s true  that Women have progresed in many fields but this is also not false that there are still constraints on her . It’s true that women have won their freedom...

P stands for Prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment .  There are about 42 million prostitutes in the world .The question is why some women adopt this practice where they are addressed as call girls or white slaves ?   Do the women adopt it on their own wishes ? May be these women are in dire need of money , money for food or clothing or children’s education or mere survival . So financial reasons may become one’s basis for adopting Prostitution  and act  slaves at the feet of men’s sex desire.   May be after some time , their financial problems get vanished but once women have dived into this profession , it becomes difficult for them to take a U-turn .  They  become constrained as their families are also not ready to adopt them again .  So once in this industry ,  the women prefer to   just close their eyes and let themselves sink in the mire of Prostitution . ( as the below picture also speaks ) Th...

I stands for : Independent (  What does this  picture tell you ?   To me , it tells that a woman who   has the wings , who  has the ability to fly , who has the power within to glow , still  has been  enslaved in a glass cage .  ) A piece of fiction on the word Independent My excitement got high up to the sky as I read the  mail  about getting  shortlisted  for  an official Dubai trip. The company must have seen some quality in me that I was required to head the team at this five days conference  . My smile , my pride , my ability , all got its wings . I got so eager to share the news with someone at the earliest . And who else would   be  better than My Better Half ?  I quickly picked up phone and dialled . ” O Aadi , I am so  so so happy today , U know what ? I am going to Dubaiiiii ” I was in such a sparky mood What to say of happy or sparky , the voice just didn’t come from the other side . “Aadi , Hello ! Are you there ? Did you listen ?  Are you able to hea...

  For the last few days , I am reading  the book OTHERNESS . In a world increasingly divided along the lines of colour, despite its apparent modernity , this book makes a hard  look at the realities that lurk within us , both as individuals and as a society. Why are we judged and discriminated based on gender , skin, colour , nationality or many other things ? As I was going through this book and its name OTHERNESS always striking my mind hard ,  a question pondered my mind . And I thought who would be able to answer it better than the author of this book OTHERNESS . So I requested the author of the book to submit a guestpost on my blog in answer to my question. Here it goes:— As an individual, how do you see OTHERNESS amongst males, females and the third sex?   This is not an easy answer and neither will it be easy for the querent to understand if the querent is not aware of Pierre Bourdieu’s sociological theories.  Although the question is somewhat right (as I am not...

  जानते हैं ? मेरी माँ केवल 10 साल की है , पर मैं अपनी माँ को पहचानती नही हूँ , ना ही मैं अपने पिता को  पहचानती हूँ। अरे , मैं क्या , मेरे पिता को तो मेरी माँ भी नही पहचानती । यह है हमारे समाज का एक काला डरावना सच । मात्र दस साल की  गुड़िया   , जिसकी अभी गुड़िया से खेलने की उम्र है , एक  नन्ही सी गुड़िया की माँ बन गयी । दस साल ? केवल दस साल की उम्र ??? सुनकर धक्का सा लगता है , अचंभा सा होता है , पर  ये सच है , हमारे समाज का एक डरावना सच ।  दस साल की एक लड़की का रेप हो जाता है , वो गर्भवती हो जाती है , गर्भपात करवाने की इजाज़त के लिए कोर्ट में अपील की जाती है , लेकिन इजाज़त नही मिलती । डॉक्टर कहते हैं  लड़की अभी वयस्क नही है  , इसलिए माँ और बच्चे दोनों की जान को खतरा हो सकता है ।   यह घटना पिछले साल चंडीगढ़ में हुई और उस दस साल की लड़की  (जिसे हम  गुड़िया कहें या रेप पीड़िता ? ) ने 17 अगस्त 2017 को एक नन्ही सी गुड़िया को जन्म दिया । आप सोच सकते हैं दस साल की उम्र क्या होती है ?  वो  नादान बचपन , वो मासूमियत से भरा दिल , अटखेलियां करने की उम्र ,  ज़िन्दगी के सुनहरे सपने , सब काले धुँए की तरह...