The 7 PM Show

The 7:30 PM Show

Purnima was her usual cheerful self, completely engrossed in the preparation for the 7:30 PM show. She was not to be disturbed and you could do that at your own peril. She wanted to leave no stone unturned so that at least that evening she could enjoy the show at Rangashankara, the famous theater. Her joy very neatly concealed her enigma.

The clock showed 6’o clock and the darkness of the evening was fast setting in. The typical summer evening was breezing lightly and the heat was not unbearable due to that partial cooling effect. Her house was on the ground floor in a 2-storey building. Two tall and huge coconut trees adorned either sides of the main gate. They were able to cushion the house from most of the dust thrown by the fast moving traffic just outside the house. So, she was OK with not cleaning the house as she used to do every evening despite there being nothing much to sweep. Point 1 ticked off the list.

Preparing the evening tea and snacks for her in-laws was the next item on her itinerary. The in-laws were quite cooperative to say the least and didn’t require exotic items to be served. Yet, giving something filling was necessary because they would not take food alone. She had Dosa batter ready. She was fast and produced light, sumptuous Paper Dosas for everybody at home. Little Krishna enjoyed them the most. She too had a couple of them. The food festival consumed 20 minutes.

Dinner was the next arduous task. She had planned for Chapatees and Brinjal curry. No slogging in the kitchen. She planned to heat them in the microwave on her return. So, this item got ticked off pretty quickly as well. Time recorded: - 6:35 PM.

The 6-year old Krishna was hyperactive as always. Managing his demands was the toughest assignment for Purnima. She had to explain him a cartoon serial, play cricket and then help him to solve some Magic Book puzzle. Coaxing him to stay back with the grandparents was the toughest task. But, she got the job done in flat 10 minutes. Her acumen was never this bright before. :)

She rushed to have a superfast shower. Here dress was ready. She geared up in that lovely green Salwaara-Kameeza in a flash. Her beauty and appearance were too loud too be ignored by anybody. Her glowing complexion, her perfect figure, her neat hairdo, her eye-catching footwear were all very attractive. Alas! Getting into the top gear ate into the time. She left the dressing table at 7:05 PM. 25 minutes to go to the start of the show.

The theater was at a 10 minutes walk from her house. This gave her the added confidence that she would definitely reach the theater in time that day. The gates used to close 5 minutes in advance. So, she had another 10 minutes to spare. She had all the necessary supplies in her purse and everything else was done according to her long-drawn list. She called Dinkar, her husband, and told him that she would leave in another 10 minutes. Somewhere at the back of her mind she had a flashback of all the failures of the past attempts to reach the theater in time. She was extra happy to have done things well. Fingers crossed.

Krishna was playing with a Frisbee and she scolded him for not doing so. But he continued without giving her an ear. The object nearly missed the grandmother, upturned the jar on the dining table and by the time she could snatch it mid air, it had hit her on the stomach. Poor Purnima. She writhed in pain and deposited herself into the sofa. She was in dilemma – whether to cry out in pain or to ignore it and rush for the show. Her son innocently hugged her and told her to pacify. She eventually did cry. But I cannot say for sure whether it was because of the pain or the love of her son. :) Poor Her.

By the time she decided to make last ditch effort to reach for the theater, it was 7:20. She hired an auto-rickshaw and it literally flew. But getting out of it, making the payment and then crossing the busy road to get into the theater pushed the clock to 7:26 PM. She pleaded vehemently with the gatekeepers and even ringed the Director, but rules were rules. She had a crestfallen face when she returned home some 15 minutes later and collapsed into the sofa.

All her previous failures zoomed past her eyes and her mind attained a state of semi-coma if I can dare say that. Her husband arrived shortly and straightaway realized what had happened. He was habitual of these situations and calmly put an arm around her shoulders and pacified her. He told her to try the next day’s show and gave her a small pep talk. Unfortunately, none of it was something that Purnima didn’t already know. It was like mourning in the family. Everybody sat still and waited for her to regain composure.

Seven months ago, Pankaj, her colleague, had informed Purnima about the Rangashankara and its theater activities. Her interest in plays and performing arts was rekindled instantly and she discussed at length about several things associated to the theater. Her keen desire to watch performances at Rangashakara was fuelled by the absorbing narrative that Pankaj gave. Plus, the theater was at a distance of stone’s throw away from her house compared to the huge city of Bangalore. She had huge expectations of herself to make it to the theater very soon.

Her planning actually began from that fateful day. She knew that she could manage it with the support of her colleagues and family. The only real impediment was that kids below the age of 10 were not allowed inside the theater which forced her to find a caretaker for her son before she could embark on that journey of hers. Working couples who have moved from outstation rarely find a helping hand from family members on a daily basis. Most of the family stays elsewhere in the country and can only visit sparingly. Luckily, in her case, Mysore, where her parents resided, was not far away. She managed to coax them to stay with her for some time.

Prioritization had become the single biggest hurdle for her. With only 24 hours in a day, that is something that we all rue at some point or the other. The fact that she was a working woman didn’t help either. She constantly had to put items concerning the office and home at the top of her priority list. Ageing parents, a young child, a hard-working husband and a demanding office always meant the she was never in a position to decide anything randomly and of her own accord. She would not take a decision without consulting her husband. And many a times, the results were disappointing for a theater visit.

Her health was also taking a beating following such a hectic schedule. In India, a woman is programmed to take the least notice of her own well-being. Social and emotional traditions have ensured this stranglehold for long. She had developed a very preliminary Asthma which forced her to take a break every 30 minutes from whatever she did. Such compulsion doesn’t help when you are running against time to catch a show. Moreover, Dinkar wasn’t having a soft corner for theater and drama. This lack of interest often left her with no choice but to abandon the plans on some occasions.

The highly attractive wall clock announced 8:30 PM. Purnima was slowly getting back to normalcy. The family decided to have an early dinner. Now that she had time, she volunteered to cook some Sambhar and rice as well. Dinakar gleefully joined her into the kitchen. Krishna was reciting lovely kindergarten rhymes to appease her mother in his own sweet style of saying sorry for being the party spoiler. And when Purnima finally emitted a radiant smile, everything was forgotten and drums rolled for another attempt to scale the Everest. :)

Don’t be a Woman in India

In January reports poured in from Hyderabad stating that uteruses had been removed from the body of many women under the age of 30 in the name of the Arogyashri Scheme. These hysterectomy operations have deprived these women of chances to bear children. The government prescribed that uterus could be removed in case of women aged 30- under the scheme only if they suffered from multiple fibroids, carcinoma in situ, carcinoma cervix stage I and II, ovarian carcinoma. Alas! The poor women from the villages have been lured into agreeing to get their uteruses removed in the guise of instilling the fear that they will die if uteruses were not removed. Doctors who did this heinous crime had only pecuniary benefits in mind.

Less than 3 months later, doctors in Dausa, Rajasthan, repeated the act. This time around the scheme is named Janani Suraksha Yojana and aims to help the expectant mothers. 226 women were duped in the pretext of curing non-existent diseases. No one takes notice unless somebody breaks the news in Media. This is the worst kind of corruption that can happen. A woman unable to bear a child will always struggle to come to terms with her existence. More so in utilitarian India. A woman is just another piece of utility for child-bearing, physical pleasures and performing a host of menial duties. Everybody tries to take advantage of these poor creatures. Doctors have shown they are not far behind and they have a much neater way to escape the hands of the law.

A young athlete gets thrown off the train in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. You may say the intention behind the attack on Arunima Sinha was robbery and any male could also have suffered the same fate. But, being a woman she was a very soft target with hardly any physical resistance and support from the onlookers. She may get a Jaipur Foot and Railways may have offered her a job. But will there be any other such hue and cry for a normal woman thrown off the train or abused and humiliated in any other way in any part of the country? Stats reveal that the answer is a big NO. We will continue to display some bland emotions once the incident gets reported in the media or reaches our ears/eyes through some other means. We will think strongly about it and that will be the end of it all.

Places rife with communal or sectarian conflicts are the safest haven for the crimes against women. Jammu & Kashmir is a prime example. The murder of 40 year-old Hasina Begum, a Panchayat election candidate in the Badgam district, by the Ultras suggests that women are supposed to stay in subservience of men and the moment they try and break-free from the shackles, they should be punished, often the corporal punishment.

Mumbai saw the suicide of a teenager arising out of her conscience not feeling good after she was raped by her father’s ex-employer for over a week in order to revenge the father’s escape from the debt trap set by the ex-employer. Any body does anything and the grouse is borne by the women belonging to either sides. This happens day in and day out all over India.

Women in our society will have to wait till eternity to get the respect they deserve. The only women we care as individuals are those who are in direct and indirect relation to us. Others are Social and Governmental responsibilities. My apologies and big shame-laden head bow to all the women in India. Some day you may feel owned and secure.

Our "DHARMA" towards Women

According to the Hindu mythology, the most complete conversation about the Dharma, one’s values and practices, took place between Yaksha, the benevolent spirit, and Yudhishtira, the eldest son of Pandu. Even today the questions and their answers carry a lot of significance. They give you a very good understanding of the ethics of life. No doubt, Hindus revere them now and hereafter.

I wish to highlight another set of timeless questions that Draupadi, the wife of the Pandavas, put in front of the pantheon of the Kuru dynasty. She had been lost to the Kauravas in the ugly game of gambling, Chausara. Those questions sought replies not only from the legend of Bheeshma, Dronda, Krupachaarya, Dhrutaraashtra, and Vidur, but also to the rest of the civilized world, to us who are the inheritors of the past. What makes them invaluable is the context, pattern and organization of the society to which they belonged.

The one that haunts me the most is “Does a man own his wife? If yes, doesn’t he lose her the moment he loses himself? If no, how can one individual offer another up for grabs without his/her consent?” Yudhishtira had no answers. Others were silent too. She kept insisting for the answer. Finally, Bheeshma did break his silence and opined that “A man has every right over his wife.” To this Draupadi ripostes that “If this is the case then isn’t the man responsible for safeguarding the honour and life of his wife?” No more answers were given.

During those days women were accorded a high social pedestal. There voices were heard and good measures taken. Still, through this incident, the treatment of women as the objects of rebuke, vengeance and lust whenever things get a little bit ugly. What occurred before and after Draupadi came up with these questions can be discussed separately though that information is no less useful. The situation demands a careful study indeed.

Men have not learned any lesson in this matter. They continue to dominate, own, trample and humiliate women brazenly. We do get odd reporting of an event of men selling women for as hideous a thing as prostitution as well as a petty thing like a bottle of wine. Sometimes they stand on the side of the victim and at other times, they will be colluding with the perpetrators of the crime. They may feel bad when their own women get insulted but any other case can garner only lip service from them.

Both the contemporary and previous women folk have been subjected to this type of questionnaire more often than not. Alas, we have no answers even now. Of course, laws and regulations are there to protect and uphold women rights but that is it. Laws are paperwork if not implemented. A modern day Draupadi can be found so easily. Oppression of women, physical and mental, continues unabated.

Those answers must be researched to really ascertain what women mean to our society in particular and humanity in general. We treat women in ways that suit our needs for the occasion. Tradition is always tweaked and adulterated to drive home the purpose. Rape, molestation, punishment etc. are ways used to treat women when enemies want to settle scores, be it individual, group, countries or whatever.

A good society hoping to continue its journey into time must define an unbreakable code of conduct w.r.t. women. If men do the job, the groundwork is done by the women. They are complimentary for the society. They must be given the security and opportunity they need to live a life of dignity and purpose.

No Dharma is more important than establishing women as equals, at least.