Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Not the real India

The treasured only child of her parents. Someone who was encouraged to soar as high as her wings could take her. A person who held her own even in a not entirely equitable world. All these years, I genuinely believed that India allowed a woman to attain her potential.

The country I grew up in is not the real India.

In India, girls are killed before they are born; they are allowed to starve through neglect; they sold into sexual slavery; they are denied a voice at home; they are invisible in the community.

How long can such extremes co-exist?

_____

I visited rural Maharashtra in May. Saw women struggling to assert themselves, to claim their position in society. Change has to come- but how long will it take? This photograph forms a part of my Pictoral Flashback of 2011.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Natasha - You raise such sobering questions! As I read your Drabble, too, I was thinking of how fortunate you are that your parents raised you to have real aspirations...

Jayne said...

The contrast works perfectly for a drabble - such a light-hearted word for a powerful and thought-provoking post.

Jan Morrison said...

Oh Natasha - this is a wonderful drabble. Truly thought-provoking.

Sueann said...

Oh my!! Such a dichotomy of thought!!
Perfect drabble
Hugs
SueAnn

Anonymous said...

Well said. So true.

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails