Feminine Feelings

FEMININE FEELINGS

One fine day, she wakes up to discover her wings fallen to the ground. She picks them up and wipes the layer of dust over it. The golden sequins which adorned those gleaming wings has been ruined by the footsteps of people. Her heart goes weary to mend the most loved pair of wings she had herself woven with the silken threads. The knackered heart of Saumya, a thirteen year old kid, felt the first pang of ignorance. She screams to vent out her ongoing fury , the deepest grief of losing her wings . How would she now enact the "Mother Honesty"

In the talent show. She throws  away all the soil plates lying on her bedside table. "Mommy" , she yells and cries till she consoles her hollowed dreams with a promise to mend the wings.Saumya, a grade 8 student of Modern Convent school, has been known for her creative skills by her classmates, teachers, juniors and even seniors but to her astonishment there exists a pair of eyes in her own home ,which dislike her benign craft of cutting papers.  Her grandmother has an aversion for the skill that litters the house and spoils the pieces of clothes. 

She runs to the store and tries to search for a new adhesive that could join the tattered parts of the wings and  messes up with the queue of jars kept in the store room , dropping down a jar of sugar, in a haste of searching for the Fevicol . 

" You, why don't you understand girl ? Stop spreading all the litter around. "

" Garandma, who has broken my wings?" 

Saumya's curly lashes fluttering in pain, giving way to her moist eyes and looks at her grandmother , waiting for an answer.

" I asked Leela to clean your room and throw away all the clutters "

Saumya ran to her mother who was preparing the breakfast . " mommy, someone broke my wings" and she flangs her arms around Anandita's waist , curling herself in want of protection. Tears falling like the precipitating clouds that wetted Anandita's kameez. 

" Oh, how my child ? Who broke those lovely wings ?" 

" Grandma sent Leela aunty to my room for cleanup ".and she sobs incessantly to pour her heart out . 

Anandita passes some gentle strokes of her fingers over her daughter's forehead and assembling her scattered fringes to the side ,she tucks them behind her tender ears. 

" don't worry my baby , make another pair of wings and this time make sure no one enters your room with an intention of breaking them "

She holds her fingers and they walk towards the other side of the verandah to reach Kaamini's room . 

" Ma , why do you think that whatever Saumya does is immaterial ? "

: See , Anandita,  don't support a child for her wrong doings . I too love her but I don't like her spending time with the art and craft material "

Saumya continued sobbing. Her voice turning nasal with the accumulated mucus in the nasal passage . " Grandma, why don't you get bhaiya's room cleaned up ?"

 Large eyes of Kaamini grow larger in rage and they speak of a pre conceived opinion held by anti feminist thoughts. 

" Don't  cry . Why don't you study like Ankit? You too would get the same value " 

" Ma, both are my kids but both are different.  Ankit is a Mathematic wizard but Saumya is creative. Her art and craft are more like her passions

 She finds solace in doing it. Why does it bother you ?"

Kaamini leaves the room , fumbling in an undertone, loud enough to be overheard,  "How badly the world has changed, now they talk of equality. A girl will be a girl ,she can't take the place of a boy " 

" Ma, remember, my daughter will live a life of her choice. She will play with pieces of papers and cloths. She too deserves to keep her room the way she wants. Nothing can take her freedom away " 

The evening was about to merge with the scarlet sky, the night was awaiting the moon to shine. They reached their destination and discovered it to be even more beautiful than what they had heard of

Paint your Dreams .

..the bill board had these words ,shimmering with blue neon lights. Anandita  went to the reception and got Saumya enrolled in the course of Art, craft and  Fabric designing. Saumya admired playing with different types of fabrics , combining them to bring about a charismatic fusion of colors and creations

 " Sir, please tell me about all the details of the course"

The man with salt and pepper hair , sitting at the reception looked tired with the day's s work 

" we are about to close now. You could have come tomorrow. Office hours are from 10 to 7. "

" sir,my daughter is good at creativity. She had designed and prepared a pair of wings for her role in the talent show to be held next week by her school.  Somehow they broke, now she wants another pair as soon as possible " 

That evening proved to be the beginning of a new era. Things changed at home too

 Gradually Saumya became an expert in the art and represented her school at many inter school events. Leela no more disturbed her belongings and she seemed Saumya's permission before clean up 

Saumya became the youngest Fabric designer at the age of 16 and she was awarded trophy for young talent by the education minister. Some firms extended offers to her for the role of their promo designer. 

It's not always the way the world thinks a girl to be , sometimes a broken pair of artificial wings gives impetus to build the real ones

 Feminism isn't only about having the freedom to read, write and dance  it's the freedom of expression,  the freedom of making choices and the freedom of appreciating one's own feelings.....