Is it Women’s day?
Too fat, too thin, too loud, too soft, too independent, too shy, too covered,too open, too girlish , too tomboy, too fair, too dark , too tall, too short, too vocal, too quiet, too orthodox, too religious and so much more to judge.

The Skirt judged for being too short, The Burkha judged for being too covered.
The one in skirt labelled slut or the provoker, the one in Burkha considered orthodox.
The streets still not safe, the unborn still killed, the loner still raped, the unwilling still forced, the widow still taunted, the raped still not accepted, the rapist still free.

The prostitutes considered ‘Bad Woman’ but what about the man engaged with her?

Dowry still kills many, the divorced left without any financial support.
Woman still symbolises the weak “don’t cry like a girl”.

The voices still unheard, the wounds still unhealed.
She is still an unwilling burden.
For a day let’s celebrate just for the sake of it, and do the same tomorrow.
Happy women’s day? Is it actually women’s day?
Celebrate this day, the day you respect us and our choices.

Fatima Rehman, Patna Women’s College

  letter to the editor