Well, women of Kashmir were very progressive and they used to wear all sorts of western clothes, Hell! This reverse trend, masculine militancy, oh! They have got women all veiled and oppressed once again. Oh well, this is true of post intifada Palestanian women also. Thank God, we can still boast of Egypt were women protested by burning that ‘damn thing’ in public, I guess in the 18th century itself. Those were the progressive women and what has come to become of women’s emancipation and the movement. Wait a minute, doesn’t this sound like the Rightwing agenda in India, what are feminists talking about? Are they saying the same thing?
I was standing at a stall, munching away on some snacks when suddenly a young boy stepped out of an ATM machine right next to the stall. He caught my eye and he applied an unusual break to the speed of his feet and stood like a pole catching the diagonal view of my face. I could sense, he waited for me to give him an eye contact. I did so out of genuine curiosity to see, if it was someone I know. Well, before I could take my eyes off him, he intervened, ‘It is so damn hot today’, I stood blank for a moment, a moderate smile played on my lips to acknowledge that it was hot indeed. I turned my head in the direction of the stall when I heard him muttering, ‘it is so damn hot and ….’, I turned again to make sure he wasn’t just continuing the conversation and to my surprise, he was. He continued, do you not feel very hot in that head thing? I was not surprised, nor angry, because this question has come to me number of times and every time I have given a suited reply that charmed my mood.
May be he asked to understand why women wear that thing or what was its use, but I was in no mood to vex all my knowledge of the issue, that whole thing can bore people, since in their head they would be counting, ‘what a material loss to waste time on a conversation like that, when actually I would just have wanted a plain flirt’. So instead I said, ‘We generally feel hot in our clothes, should we get rid of them too’, this embarrassed him to an extent and he came out with a direct apology.
I smiled and said, it is okay, but we Muslim women are quite used to all this. Well sometimes I actually feel hot in the veil and at time wearing clothes too, so I don’t mind people asking. But yes, this gentleman’s idea was to show solidarity in the plight of me having to wear a veil. So he continued, I think you misunderstood me, ‘I also want to know why you should be wearing this? And before he could complete his sentence, I intervened; well I am not oppressed by this.
Logically speaking a ‘piece of cloth’ if I reduce it to that should do no harm to any person, women, children, old aged, aunties, uncles, governments, States, industrialists, capitalists, Marxists, Islamists and also feminists? Isn’t it funny that almost 100% of social constituents have an opinion about a piece of cloth?
Ok I won’t produce my opinion as a ‘choice debate’ that I want to wear and veil because it is my choice? No, Indeed any sane woman in today’s upbringing cannot choose to be veiled or use it as a marker of identity. I will tell you how it oppresses women in today’s world,
1. You are watched and researched, I don’t want that for myself, I love my private life
2. Everybody gives you ‘sympathy’ when you actually want respect
3. Despite your qualifications you are not useful for anybody in the capitalist market
4. Marxists would not need you, since you might look like a very moral woman and oppressed women can’t fight the struggle of the working class.
In short there are more chances for you to become absolute piece of trash, with no money or any contributory role to play. And yes if the men in your community still think you are not moral enough they could further alienate you by getting into all sorts of debate like what is the extent, amount and prescription of the veil. Sometimes you might feel there is nothing else for the men in the house to discuss other then the veil. Well, but the veil discussion is not a part of my family though, since my mum doesn’t veil.
Oh now you still thinking why the hell should I wear it, if my Mom doesn’t?
Because I want to exist as a ‘woman’ demanding equal respect as a ‘man’ as is my God given right, I would not want to dress that shows my body in a corporate only to keep the work environment blooming, I would not wear a ‘black burkha’ showing my eyes only to be able to gain that respect, I will veil just as is ordained to me, I will make a decision of my own. The world, your world will bow to me, when capitalist’s lose their money, feminists lose their bodies, Marxist’s their struggle against religion and Islamists their purpose to dominate women. I shall stand on my own world view to watch it fade away.
Oh well when I said good bye to that boy, who hailed from Bihar, I had said much till then to him, the conversation had moved to Kashmir and Militarization. I only said to him to ask the Indian government to stop sending the poor people in the army to kill the poor people of my land, only to enjoy their riches in their family groups. I asked him not to worry about a 'veiled woman' next time; since we need to rescue men first.
