#Paradoxicalsheroes:Kalyani Walunj

I was 3 months old when my mother left me with the nanny to return back to her work. Now that I have grown up many times she reminds me of the times she had to work when she really wanted to play with me, teach me how to write or talk or even behave. She couldn’t see me evolve and enjoy my childhood because in this patriarchal society when a women works she doesn’t just have to work at the workplace but also have to do the daily chores. It is her responsibility to look after the children, keep the house intake and also work for supporting the family financially. Now after me shifting from one nanny to another till I was 3 I atlas started to go to school, now my nanny was my elder sister. She became my mommy when she was just 9 years old. She did everything from brushing my teeth, packing my Tiffin, combing my hair, absolutely everything. She also started helping my mom in the kitchen from the age of 4. Her innocence vanished away and she became an adult when she wasn’t supposed to be. But what if I had a brother would he also have been my second mother, helped mommy in kitchen, looked after me? What have the boys done to owe the pleasure? Why do only they get to look at the world through rose tinted glasses? My mother survived the hard times because she had my sister to share the workload. My sister didn’t just dress me up everyday, she was the one to teach me qualities like kindness, selflessness, empathy, etc. Then I grew up I started to understand this ruthless society’s rules and regulations. This was the time when India was called as the rape capital of the world. So my dad took me to a taekwondo class so that I will not have to rely on someone for my protection. There were times where I had to use my taekwondo skills to survive in this wild nation. My story might not be any different than yours because this is a preposterous society we live in. But this not fair, it is time we take responsibility for our actions and break this system to bring the long waited equality. I will even stand alone against this patriarchal nation because having a vagina doesn’t make me believe any less that my balls aren’t bigger than yours.