An Appeal to Indian Women .
1️⃣ Indian society hates women. It hates unmarried good-looking women even more. There is a reason why women like Draupadi, Sita and Shakuntala exist in our literature. They are warnings meant to educate you. If you’re in the wrong place, you will be punished, and everyone will love to watch you burn. Misogyny is a part and parcel of Indian culture. It has always been this way and it will always be this way.
2️⃣ Your biggest asset is your financial independence. This is the ONLY leverage you have and will ever have. Do NOT sacrifice your education or career for your family or children. Invest in yourself, invest in your future. Keep your finances separate from your partner. Do not trust anyone with your money. If your husband/boyfriend spends money on you, try to match it as much as you can. Do NOT accept free lunches.
3️⃣ If your partner is paying for the house you live in, it is not your house. What belongs to you is only what belongs to you legally. Unless you pay the rent (and keep the receipts) or have the lease in your name, it is not your house. It doesn’t matter if you have lived in it for 6 months or 10 years. It is not your house.
4️⃣ The Indian state is an extension of the Indian family. Deeply patriarchal and broken. Don’t rely on the police, media, or any kind of state apparatus. You need to know that you’re vulnerable. Only money and power can protect you. Acquire those.
5️⃣ Indian society doesn’t believe in love. It believes in transactions. Indians pay billions of rupees to watch romance on-screen but for them, it exists only on screen. It is entertainment. Be careful with who you love. Do not devote yourself to men who don’t deserve it. Shower your love on yourself before you give it to any man.
6️⃣ What is considered fun for men, is considered debauchery for women. Indian society doesn’t see women as humans who need to relax and enjoy themselves. If he smokes weed, he is stressed and needs to let loose. If you drink alcohol, you are a characterless bad influence. Remember this hypocrisy and have fun with only those who you trust. If you can afford it, travel outside India to have fun.
7️⃣ Learn to think of relationships in terms of sunk costs. This is a concept in finance but it applies to life too. You don’t need to stay in a bad investment just because you invested in it. Just because you gave a man 5 years in your past, you don’t need to give him 5 years of your future. You can walk away anytime. Limit your losses. The past is irrelevant to the future.
8️⃣ If you have to live with dignity on your own terms, you have to fight. You have to fight everyone and everything. You will be crushed often. But it is a price worth paying.
– Jiya Payal Pattanayak.
അടിക്കുറിപ്പ്:
കേരളത്തിലെ ഒരു നടി തനിക്കുണ്ടായ പീഡനത്തിനെതിരെ നടത്തിയ പോരാട്ടത്തിൻ്റെ ഫലമായി ഉണ്ടായ ഹേമ കമ്മറ്റി റിപ്പോർട്ട് നാലര വർഷം പൂഴ്ത്തി വെക്കാൻ സർക്കാരിന് ഭയമുണ്ടായില്ല. ഏറ്റവും വലിയ ചൂഷണം നടക്കുന്ന സിനിമാ മേഖലയിൽ മാറ്റം കൊണ്ടുവരാൻ WCC നടത്തുന്ന പോരാട്ടത്തിന് പിന്തുണ നൽകി എല്ലാവരും അധരസേവ നടത്തുന്നുണ്ടെങ്കിലും ഫലപ്രദമായ നിയമങ്ങൾ കൊണ്ടുവരാൻ സര്ക്കാർ മടികാണിക്കുന്നതിൻ്റെ പിന്നിൽ പുരുഷമേധാവിത്തം അരങ്ങ് തകർക്കുന്ന സിനിമാമേഖല തന്നെയാണ്.
– ജോയ് കള്ളിവയലിൽ.
