Intro

With a professional and personal interest in cross-cultural aspects of femininity, in Jan 2006 I came to India for a traineeship in the Centre for Social Research. I feel that the issues I’ve been reflecting on in my personal blog have outgrown the latter. Therefore, I’ve started up this one to explore Indian femininity.

What is it like to be born woman in India: verdict or blessing? What does it take to be one? Wearing sari, bangles, cumcum bindi, staying at home, downcasting your eyes in the presence of men? I guess it is not at least due to the hard work of various development agencies that we think of Indian women as powerless human beings that grow coconuts or breed cows. Right, you come here and see… By the virtue of being foreigner you’ll get to socialize with people from Indian upper class. You’ll meet those educated, career-minded, fashionably dressed girls and you’ll wonder whose rights are under threat here. Yet, you’ll go to the streets, take buses, visit villages and you’ll see sari and bangles and cumcum bindi and more of it. Being exposed to these both sides of India I am captivated to understand them and share my observations. I am happy to get challenging comments, though critique, provoking writings and any sort of feedback you’ll be willing to give.