So I dug through the archives and found this. I wrote this but never shared it? I think it was probably because of it doesn't seem to make a clear point, just ask questions. But I still find it a useful compass, even if it is two years later.
At this stage in my life, I find I have no choice but to talk about gender or being a woman. I am not going to get into how I am at this point or stage in my life but I find that I have to speak. There are so many levels on which I am tired of seeing how the world works against women. In this I include both men and women. It is not a one way street. As I moved to Minneapolis, I found myself navigating expectations of how I should be both as an 'Indian' and 'Indian woman'. I am not the first nor the last person to do this. I am just talking about my experiences, which for the longest time I have held back from sharing because I wasn't sure if there was anything new in it. That being said, not being new doesn't make it any less important. I have also often wondered how is it that people reach a point of incredible frustration and disappointment with stereotypes and expectations. I get it now. It is the timeless story of the last straw breaking the camel's back. You reach a point where you cannot take it one more time.
I often joke I feel like a fraud Indian for many reasons that involve not being able to cook Indian food and other things. I wonder if I would feel like that if I weren't a woman. I also wonder why I feel like that because I have been born, raised, studied and worked in India. I suppose even as I consciously know that I don't need to meet the stereotype of an Indian woman (and goodness knows what that would be given the incredible diversity of our country), I think I have internalized some of it and I find myself puzzling over this. But I am nothing if not a questioner, a slow, yet tenacious one. I have been able to avoid and ignore the hard things for so long but not anymore it seems.
I want to reflect on what I think it means to be an Indian woman. I would very much like to speak with people around me, irrespective of gender or nationality or any other factor. I would also like it to gather information and articles about what others believe it means to be an Indian woman in the 21st century. I googled it and I didn't really come up with much that directly answered the question. Of course I came across a long list of depressing statistics and heartbreaking stories. As the fourth-most dangerous country in the world for women, it is truly a country that hates its women. Read the links below knowing that they open the portal to a sad truth, but do read the first one. I am sure much worse exists on the Internet, and yet utter rubbish like this has the potential to do a lot of damage as well.
How to be a simple Indian girl
www.wikihow.com/Be-a-Simple-Indian-Girl
www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/here-in-india-life-has-become-even-worse-for-women/article17657164/
www.edition.cnn.com/2013/01/12/world/asia/india-women-challenge/
www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26341350
www.heyithinkthisway.wordpress.com/2010/07/27/i-hate-being-an-indian-woman/
At this stage in my life, I find I have no choice but to talk about gender or being a woman. I am not going to get into how I am at this point or stage in my life but I find that I have to speak. There are so many levels on which I am tired of seeing how the world works against women. In this I include both men and women. It is not a one way street. As I moved to Minneapolis, I found myself navigating expectations of how I should be both as an 'Indian' and 'Indian woman'. I am not the first nor the last person to do this. I am just talking about my experiences, which for the longest time I have held back from sharing because I wasn't sure if there was anything new in it. That being said, not being new doesn't make it any less important. I have also often wondered how is it that people reach a point of incredible frustration and disappointment with stereotypes and expectations. I get it now. It is the timeless story of the last straw breaking the camel's back. You reach a point where you cannot take it one more time.
I often joke I feel like a fraud Indian for many reasons that involve not being able to cook Indian food and other things. I wonder if I would feel like that if I weren't a woman. I also wonder why I feel like that because I have been born, raised, studied and worked in India. I suppose even as I consciously know that I don't need to meet the stereotype of an Indian woman (and goodness knows what that would be given the incredible diversity of our country), I think I have internalized some of it and I find myself puzzling over this. But I am nothing if not a questioner, a slow, yet tenacious one. I have been able to avoid and ignore the hard things for so long but not anymore it seems.
I want to reflect on what I think it means to be an Indian woman. I would very much like to speak with people around me, irrespective of gender or nationality or any other factor. I would also like it to gather information and articles about what others believe it means to be an Indian woman in the 21st century. I googled it and I didn't really come up with much that directly answered the question. Of course I came across a long list of depressing statistics and heartbreaking stories. As the fourth-most dangerous country in the world for women, it is truly a country that hates its women. Read the links below knowing that they open the portal to a sad truth, but do read the first one. I am sure much worse exists on the Internet, and yet utter rubbish like this has the potential to do a lot of damage as well.
How to be a simple Indian girl
www.wikihow.com/Be-a-Simple-Indian-Girl
www.edition.cnn.com/2013/01/12/world/asia/india-women-challenge/
www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26341350
www.heyithinkthisway.wordpress.com/2010/07/27/i-hate-being-an-indian-woman/
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