The International Girl Child Day was celebrated on October 11. On Day 14 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge and writing for The Blog Chatter, I write as a girl child in a letter or reflection. I know many may cringe at it saying how he can pretend to know what a woman or girl child goes through! It’s my way to be part of the change. Read and do let me know what do you think.
I am a girl. I am a child. I am a girl child
I am a child. I am a girl. They worship my female form in temples. I am worshiped. It’s the dichotomy. I am chained. I am expected to perform duties as a daughter and fulfill my husband’s obligations when I reach marriageable age without any question.
I am leered at everywhere be it traffic signal, cinema hall, college and every nook and corner of the world. I am not important, I know. They will mutilate my body and humiliate my soul. I am the form of Nirbhaya, Damini and Amaanat. You will see me partying, smoking, breaking stories on news channel, exploited servant in someone’s home, begging on the street or heading a corporate. If I sleep with my boyfriend, I am called not by my name but a slut. Last time, the bhaiya paid my parents’ money and trafficked into a dark brothel where I was beaten to death and left bruised to fulfill the needs of patrons.
You think that I am not a human being. Why do they put label on me: Wife, mother, daughter or sister? I don’t want to be all that but an individual who dreams of the prince charming, becoming a pilot or taking care of my home. Did anyone ask me what I want to be, whom I want to marry or the age to consummate my marriage? They are scared that if I am educated, I will take their place for they can never accept that a woman will placate their egos. I am not interested in taking their crown. I am angry. I am happy. I am heart- broken. I am the mad person on the street. Who are you to judge? It’s my right to be ME. You will silence my voice!
How many of my forms you will silence and stone to death? The world is celebrating the Girl Child Day. What happens after that? You are back to your old ways of deciding what is right or wrong, moral or immoral, good or bad for me. There is no point in celebrating my form as Durga, Kali or the plethora of Goddesses in temples. You will meet me everywhere, high society, a fading figure in an obscure village where my existence will not make any difference to the world. I can be a whore. How does it matter?
I am an innocent child. I believe in the goodness of men and women. I trust you for I see the divine in you but you turned into a devil and abuser in exploiting my innocence. How can you touch a small child and an innocent creature? You touch me inappropriately. I cried and hid my face. No one will listen to a child making stories against elders. I smiled to you because I see you as a guide who will protect me. I thought we had a bond. You violated my trust.
I want books to read and discover the world of beliefs, dreams, and wisdom. I crave to hold the pen in my hand, learning to write alphabets and laugh among girls of my age in school. You made me beg. You stare at me while I smile at you.
Celebrate me every day not just on Girl Child Day. Actually, you don’t need to celebrate me. I am not asking you to change your Facebook profile or Tweet about me using hashtag #GirlChildDay. If only…you could understand! I want a small place under the sun. I heard sunshine is free but I am paying a huge price for it.
Love
V
Vishal Bhidu 
I wish to see a day when we don’t have to distinguish someone on the basis of gender. We are all equals and we seriously need to accept it and incorporate it.
Great post with a powerful message. 🙂
Thanks so much Ajay. Let’s hope for such small changes that will make us go a long way in society.
My pleasure.
We all have been hoping for things to change. But I feel we need to start acting as well. I don’t know how, but we have to.
Thanks Ajay. You are right! We need to ACT first and blogging is a sure shot way to do it.
Vishal! I really feel happy that you have you have taken such a topic to write about. Girl children need to be saved, in fact not from others but our own society.
although there has been quite a lot of changes coming by, it is limited to a certain group of high income people, where even without any promotion children are safe (boy or girl) however in the rural and low income group there is very less change..hope it comes soon..
Menaka Bharathi has recently published http://simpleindianmom.in/5-easy-soil-testing-you-can-do-it-yourselves-for-growing-organic-vegetables/
Thanks so much Menaka for appreciate the theme. You’ve put it so well: It’s the same society which is guilty. There has been changes but it doesn’t reach out to the rural and marginal lot.
You know what your post made me realise, Vishal?
That this is the 1st time i’ve read about a girl/woman from a mans perspective. And you write the harsh truth so beautifully and passionately. Kudos to you, and thank you.
Thanks so much, Mayuri. I was also open to brickbats since I heard so many saying a guy cannot pretend to know what a woman goes through. It is true. I am grateful at such kind words.
Loved it Vishal..Thanks to you for writing this post. Only if everyone start thinking like you. Need more people to think like this and write like this !
Thanks Deepa. I am blessed at such kind words. We need to be the change and trust me it’s a small effort, something very simple which we can all do.
This is such a powerful post, Vishal. Although written by a man it hits on the various issues we women go through with so much sensitivity. Kudos to you.
Thanks so much Vinodini for appreciating it. A small effort and trying to understand what a woman goes through in life. Although I am not in the place of a woman, I am trying the understand the dilemmas and how you women folk fight every day. It’s dedicated to the girl child.
Very nicely put. Appreciate the sensitivity here and the way you have stressed upon the need to look at a girl child in the same manner as we look at a boy child.
Thanks so much Somali. We should get rid of this huge discrimination we do between boys and girls.
Could not agree more on this 🙂
Cheerz
great post!
Thank you!