So India is celebrating its 69th Independence Day, today. What is freedom, actually? Thinking about the word, it only seems that the definition is blur, in our context. India got freedom way back in 1947, but there are certain things which we Indians have to free ourselves from.
We, the ReshareIt team, are listing down those 10 things which we need to free ourselves from.
1. The belief that fairness is beauty.
And the mad race behind achieving it. Melanin in the skin determines the complexion of a person, and no fairness cream of the world can change it. Why can’t we stop falsifying the standards of beauty and teach our children better?
2. Misogyny and patriarchy
Deny it as much as you want; but the fact that these are very much existent, never changes. Let’s vouch for equality, and see where the success of an individual goes. Together, we can achieve it. Yes, we need feminism and it has nothing to do with male bashing.
3. Being judgmental on the basis of cast, color, gender, sexuality and anything else that you can think of.
We all are Indians and every Indian is equal – it is as simple as that. This is the Google search result. We have nothing more to say.
4. The belief that a woman’s dressing provokes a rapist and that she is equally responsible for getting raped.
No, she is not. There’s nothing wrong with the way she dresses, but there’s something definitely wrong with the way a rapist’s mind functions. Once and for all, rather than teaching our daughters to come back home early, let’s teach our sons better.
5. Making a big deal of one’s virginity.
You’re marrying a person, not his/her past. It speaks a lot about the person judging someone who’s not a virgin, rather than the one being judged. Pre-marital sex is seen as a crime for women and probably not for men. Let’s free ourselves from this belief.
6. Sex, not a taboo
Kama sutra originated in India and we are a country that is shy too talk about sex or be slightly open about it. Even saying the word “sex” is not allowed.
A country, where we do not even have the freedom to choose whom to have sex with and are looked down with disgrace for stating our needs freely, it is high time we gain our freedom.
7. It is a shame that we are now forced eat a certain kind of food
If you sit in a room with 10 people, at least 8 people will be found from different cultures. That is the beauty of every country. People from different cultures have different habits and practices. No one has the right to tell anyone what to eat and what not to eat. Banning food that people relish in their cultures is not fair. One should be free to exercise their cultural habits and beliefs.
8. Freedom to choose career
Societal pressure and parents force children into choosing career paths they are not interested in. A student who wants to become an artist is forced to apply at an engineering or medical college just because every second parent wants to proudly say, “Engineer/Doctor hai mera beta.”
“Saari Umrr Hum Mar Mar Ke Je Liye” is that kid’s anthem.
9. Sexual Orientation
People are too dumb to understand the phrase, “born this way”.
There are people who do not know the difference between gay and homosexual and there are those, who think homosexuality is a disease or a mental disorder. Sad to say, India has never been a country that has empowered people from LGBT groups. Keeping a few fortunate LGBT people aside, the rest are still struggling to have an identity and are looking for acceptability and love from their countrymen.
10. Freedom to practice one’s religion
India is not a secular state! While we practice our religion and celebrate our festivals freely, we stop others from practicing their religion, and their beliefs. Not all Hindus, Sikhs and Christians are brothers.
Ask yourself this million dollar question, “Am I free?”
Let’s start a revolution, let’s fight for our rights. Freedom is both liberating and hard to earn but it is not an impossible dream.
Jointly written by Devika Ohri and Priyanka A Patel.
