Mrinal Pande's "Girls" _ Lali's view on her daughter

     I don't know why this girl is disobedient always. Now I am not in a condition to quarrel with her. My second daughter is always mischievous. She even don't consider that her mother is pregnant. It may be a boy this time, after my three daughters!
       Yesterday I noticed that when my mother finished her story telling, my daughter wanted to sleep with her. She like my mother's soft and warm body and her quilt smells of cardamom and cloves. And my mother always keep a torch under her pillow. So that, when the lights are off, toes will not knock against anything. Unfortunately, Mom refused to give space to lie with her and allowed Hari to be there. Anyway, I think my elder daughter have angry with her due to this incident.
        Today, Ashtami day, with a tray of crimson powder Mom calls every girls. There, halwa and puris, Mom prepared all those to worship Devi on Ashtami day. Room is filled with the smell of those offerings. Where is my naughty daughter when my Mom is putting the tikka on girl's foreheads. There she is! Away from all these. She says herself as a railway engine in between these aarti. My brother's son calling her 'engine'.
        Oh God! Why my daughter is like this. Disobedient. I will make an engine out of you this very minute. My neighbor is trying to quench my rage and holding my clenched fist. She signaled my daughter to be obedient. Neighbor told me not to hit a Kanyakumari in Ashtami day. It is a sin.
      My sister told my daughter to take the Prasad from my mother. My daughter's voice breaks into a sob and she said why we all pretend to worship the girls when we people don't love them. She is screaming while saying that she don't want to be a goddess and she want nothing.
       Everyone of us are standing with a wonder. She is so furious with herself that she want to swallow the burning camphor to choke her treacherous throat. I am sure, she is diverting from the traditional customs and concepts stamped on women. She is trying to escape from the net of patriarchy.

"A Room of One's Own" - Virginia Woolf

"A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write a fiction"-Virginia Woolf

      "A Room of One's Own" is a hint to the analysis of feminist literature. It clearly portrays the unequal treatment given to women seeking education and alternatives to marriage and motherhood. She chooses to look into the lives of English women during the Elizabethan period- an era of surpassing literary accomplishment, but only among men.

      Through this book, Virginia Woolf is trying to say how women were lived in that period. The very title itself indicates that a women must have a room of her own if she wants to write. I don't know, from where this difference has originated- that the male people are superior than the female.Women were considered as the inferior citizen. There were two entirely different privileges created for men and women.

         Even in the present society, we can see the examples which indicates that women are the creatures to suffer everything. Everyone looks harshly towards women when they committed an adultery, but men is safe there. We cannot see a place without patriarchy. Everywhere is male dominated. There is nothing that a woman cannot do and a man can. Women are more able than men. They can give birth to children. And the truth is that men in that period used women only for making food and giving birth to children.

      Women will not achieve progress if she don't get education. The threats and exploitations which women were faced is clearly mentioned in this book. Viginia even created an imaginary sister of Shakespeare - Judith. Woolf listed some strong characters of William Shakespeare like Antigone, Cleopatra, Lady Macbeth, Cressida etc. Shakespeare could write such powerful characters even though he couldn't see them alive. Irony is that those female characters were acted by the male actors.

     Society didn't allow women to going out like men. She had some invisible chains which controls her limits. The main intention of writing this book is to seek why the women who were lived in that period with a lot of art in their heart could not write. Shakespeare is a great man. From his works we got a lot of powerful women characters. Why not from a woman! But, there were some women who could not bury their art in their mind. Some of them were came in the male names, like George Eliot.

      The very foolish thing is that there is no clear reason for the question why women are poorer than men. It is because of this and that. A brilliant woman got a place in the society even after the place of a worse man. She is inferior than a fool man.

     When Woolf mentioned about the imaginary sister of Shakespeare, we could see that the sister too had no right to read and write. Virginia created a sad ending on Judith's life and trying to say that if a woman went out, she may be raped by someone. Hence, she become alone in the society and committing suicide. 

     Through out the book, we can see that Woolf continues her investigation on women writers. She is sure that there will not be a book which is written by a woman. But, Virginia  still searching for that. She had an immense belief on the ability of women in arts and literature. That is why she rose her voice for women.
          "Women have served all these centuries as looking glasses possessing the magic and delicious power of reflecting the figure of man at twice its natural size".

        ".....who shall measure the heat and violence of a poet's heart when caught and tangled in a woman's body?"

Rani:Queen of Determination

          I watched a Bollywood film "Queen" directed by Vikas Bahl, in which Kangana Ranaut starred in a leading role. It is mainly a women oriented film in the period while most of the films are giving priority to male action and romantic heroes. Rani Mehra (Kangana Ranaut) is getting a transformation from her under-confidence to an out-bursting courage. Through her decisions, Rani is proving that women are capable of doing anything. They are no longer differed from the abilities of men. She can!
            This film is beginning with a Punjabi wedding celebration in which we can see a happy bride Rani. The whole family is whooping with delight. Even though Rani and Vijay(Rajkumar Rao),her fiance, got fixed their wedding through love, one day prior to the wedding he tells her that  he no longer wants to marry her. His sudden and unexpected rejection made her cry a whole day in a closed room with an ennui towards everything. Vijay says that she cannot be a girl for his dignity and prestige. Because, he changed his lifestyle after going abroad. He added that she is from a family of old customs and her conservative behavior would not match to him. Now, she is a mismatch for his status.

             Rani found that crying a whole day for his denial is not a solution. She resurrected and went Paris that they pre-booked for their honeymoon. She went alone. In a strange city. It shows that the conservative girl that Vijay mentioned can flee wherever she wants, if she made a decision. Rani met Vijay Lakshmi , who works at the hotel where Rani stays. It is the first step of Rani's change. Vijay Lakshmi is the person who changed Rani's lifestyle and made her courageous. Rani got trapped twice in Paris: one with a cop and other with a robber. But, she overcame. She wore revealing outfits. She made dance and started to drink. Accidentally, she sent her selfie wearing such an outfit to Vijay instead of Vijay Lakshmi. Vijay impressed on that and searched for her thinking that she changed as he wishes.
          From Paris, she went Amsterdam. There she shared a hostel room with three guys. Taka, Tim and Oleksander. They became friends easily and started to roam together to wherever they wants. Rani we saw in the beginning of the film has changed a lot. Situations made her to change. Now, she can spend her time with three strangers in an unknown place. Now,the things that are "allowed" and "not allowed"for women is not a matter to Rani. She, even went to a sex shop with those three friends. But, she never spoilt herself in that unfamiliar city. She never repudiate her values. She upheld her femininity validly.

              She realized the lives of her friends. And understood that everyone is suffering their own problems and finding solutions is the best remedy to overcome every snag. Vijay found her in Amsterdam and said her to reconsider their relationship. She said nothing about it. Rani reached Delhi and visits Vijay at his home. The most interesting scene in this film is that Rani hands him her engagement ring with a pleasant smile and said "thank you". That was a wonderful climax! Giving a big applause to that ending.

            Vijay might have thought that Rani has decided to forgive him. But Vijay, you are too late man. You rejected a Rani once. May be that Rani forgive and accept you again. But, this is not that Rani which you mentioned as a conservative. Now, she learned what is life and how to live happily. She is Rani: Queen of decisions and strong determination. Rani became a powerful symbol of womenhood. She will not see how vast and wide this world if Vijay didn't reject her. That is why she said    'thank you'. She understood that the life is important and women are not a buying commodity when men wants. So, atlast she rejected the life with a person who has a camouflag behaviour. It is a better choice. Appreciating it. It is a green signal towards women that they can live strongly through destructing the obstacles in front of them.

Blind

I can't see anything...
Where are the trees?
Where are they?
And the rivers...
A flow of crystal clear water.
I can only see the flow of busy people.
The rain!!!
Is it only a mirage?
Can I see it in my life?
Only to feel what it is...
May be it is a miracle
That my grandpa saw in his dreams...
He told me about them...
The wood!!!
A diverse collection of trees...
I can only see
The collection of skyscrapers...
Emotionless creations...
I opened my eyes
As wide as a world.
But...
Am I blind?
I can't see those ecstatic creations...
May be my grandpa lived
In another planet!
A green planet!!
Which is full of hurst and blossoms....

She - The Unknown

Everyday she woke up before the sun
Made delicious food
for her little children....
She mixed the food with love
And fed them...
Her husband too felt her luscious meal...
She stuffed four abdomen
With affection...
And they didn't notice her...
There never raised a squeal on love...
From the birth to the death of a day,
She worked ceaselessly...
Household chores are always
Cyclic and continuous....
It will not end...
It gets restarted by the next day...
She has to rinse the clothes..
Iron it and fold it without a crease...
But, she never noticed her contortions...
Like a pea plant, her children grew faster
She too...
They became bright and distinguished...
They compelled Daddy
To attend their convocation...
But, never to their mother...
She is weak now...
And Daddy is still an executive..
No one knows
She is the impulse of those brighter...
Now she remained alone...
And unknown...

Ripples of peace

Even the smallest act of caring for another person is like a drop of water, it will make ripples throughout the entire pond...

My oozing memories...

A gentle touch to the nature....