A role-reversal is slowly sneaking into our
household breaking the ‘home-hearth’ stereotype of women
See, papa is changing nappies; squeals a six
year old RohitSaxena with disbelief, whose dad mingle with household chores as
easily as salt dissolves in water. His mother is working with a call center, a
high wattage job that demands working at odd hours. Daddy dearest runs a
chemist shop, just outside his house and thus remain accessible 24/7.
Mumbai, like other metros in India, is
witnessing change not only in its gender profile but also its unique expression
since past few years. Globalization has literally forced women out from their
traditional ‘home-n-hearth’ closets.
A role reversal is slowly sneaking into our
household. Many believe that moms should not step into dad’s shoes. The
traditional image of moms attending to kids’ daily chores gets a beating these
days. Now, the sight of a dad changing diapers and peeling off potatoes won’t
make a big surprise.
Salma Haidar, who works in an NGO believes,
now the economic imperatives shape family construct.‘Earlier in our community the women were
seldom allowed to peek out, leave alone attending offices for work. Now the
situation has diametrically changed. Today they even work in shifts, as you
find in news channels, call centers and many more similar workstations,’ says
Salma.
‘Hard times require tough decision,’
pontificates a media executive Manuel Fernandez, who believes this reflect
gradual empowerment of women. ‘There are many examples of such reversals of
roles, particularly in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai,’ he says.
Out rightly rejecting the contention that
it’s the outcome of Western impact, he says, ‘this is wrong to say we have
embraced Western culture. In our Indian traditions where women fought valiantly
to defend her nation, had to leave her offspring back at home.’
gud article
ReplyDelete