Roshan is Nisha’s brother. One fine evening, when Nisha returned home at 9pm:
Roshan -“What were you doing there so late in the night?”
“I was coming from my friend’s house”, replied Nisha.
“And who was the guy you were talking to?”
“Who? Oh Shashank! He’s my batch mate”
“I see. Nowadays you are talking to lot of boys”
“Mind you, they are my friends. And you also talk hours and hours over phone? Did I ever ask who you talk to?”
“I was talking to my girlfriend. Any problem? I can do this because …
... because I am a boy.”
“Male chauvinism”- The only words came out of my mouth. This is one of the day to day incidences what we see in Indian families. Today youths advocate for women liberation, their independence, men women equality etc. Ask a college going guy and he can lecture hours and hours on these topics. If you go to college canteens, you can always find a group of boys boasting-“I am going for a date this weekend”. “You know my girlfriend kissed me yesterday.” You can see the joy and happiness in their eyes. During all these funny gossips, somebody murmured-“Dude! I saw your sister with that guy going Movie?” Suddenly, the smile disappears from our cool, open-minded dude. He leaves the group at that very moment, returns home and …
Double Standards! If you do something, feel happy while doing it, don’t find anything wrong in it for you or for your girlfriend, the same thing seems a sin for your sister. I remember a dialogue from a bollywood movie-“Sahebjade, har ladki kisi na kisi ki behan hoti hai”.
Many a times, I have been confronted with a question, sometimes by boys and sometimes by girls – would you allow your sister to have an affair? My response is that it would be her decision. If I crave for a girlfriend, why doesn’t she deserve a boyfriend? If she is not matured enough, I, of course, will help her in making the right decisions so that she doesn’t get cheated. Even if she is gullible, adamant, trapped in an emotional net, I would not force upon her. Life might teach her the harder way. Because, I believe, the peace caused by fear is never permanent. If I prevent her, she will try to do whatever she wants covertly. Moreover, my perception about her decisions may prove wrong as well.
