When a Girl Walks Alone...

Let’s see now, I’m guessing a lot of people especially guys will be offended by this. So here’s a disclaimer for clarification.

Disclaimer: The below written material does not apply to all the men or boys. So please don’t get offended. It is neither intended to cause harm nor any offence.

It all starts one fine day..., actually, many a fine days, or rainy days, or sunny days, in fact any sort of day. Imagine a girl going to college from her hostel, both the gates of her hostel and her college campus hardly 10 meters apart. I might commend here the college for its brilliant thinking in making such an arrangement, so as to minimize the danger; a young college girl might face in the outside world. Of course I am not mentioning the prison-like rules followed in the said college which surprisingly apply only to the girls not the boys of the college. Brilliant, right?! I mean why would girls even want to step out of their hostels (Imagine that!) while of course, boys need to have this freedom. Why, you ask? Well as my college would answer, ‘because they are boys, and we are girls’! Of course, that fundamentally justifies that question. And if you are still not satisfied and continue to insist on receiving answers, fair warning well heeded my friend, they hand out suspensions here for free and with alarming regularity.

Anyhow, this is not my point. Where was I now? Yes, one day (the nature of which has already been clarified before), this girl feeling very secure and content in the military security provided for girls in the college went about her classes. Unfortunately she dared to commit a cardinal sin. Horrors! She walked alone in the campus. What could be a greater sin? As it was, it happened. Walking up a crowded stairs to her next class, all she could do was keep a stony face and walk away. Why? Well, don’t you know? Certain boys in that college felt the need to call out to her, make crude comments bordering on vulgarity, sing songs bordering on the uncouth, obscene and distasteful and insist on keeping a one- sided conversation. The cause of which we might never know. Let’s discuss a few plausible reasons. One, have they been so deprived of the company of the opposite gender, that this is a last resort to get any sort of attention from them? Two, it’s often that a man’s insecurity about his own, ahem, sexuality, or lack thereof, projects out as a social disorder, inclined towards exhibiting it as a social inability to behave as the society requires. (I vote for this reason, as the main cause!). Third, they are uneducated, illiterate animals who simply know no better (But honestly, they are studying in a college after all, so this is not possible.) Fourth, well, quite frankly I can go on degrading and insulting this general class of filth but let’s leave all that to your imaginations.

Now, you, as a person reading this might raise certain issues about the morality of the girl, for example, the way she was dressed. Thankfully, by our University norms on dress code, it’s quite impossible to do so- formal Indian clothes (churidars, suits) with a dupatta pinned to your shoulders. After being covered from head to toe in cloth, the question of improper or provoking dress code is out. I am going to deviate here and mention, no matter how a girl is dressed, she is not asking for it, be it a short dress or a Burkha. She’s not asking for it unless she’s standing in the middle of the road, stark naked, screaming, ‘Rape me, rape me or insult me, insult me’.

Coming back to where we left off, what other possible reasons could you raise justifying this behavior?

This is just one of the few, real incidents that happen here every day in this college and others, a few of the lesser evils, rather. Girls here are continuous victims of eve teasing and up to certain extents, of sexual harassment. And don’t you dare tell me that boys will be boys, or it’s just a bit of fun they had. In that case, I will be forced to call your definition of fun at the expense of insulting the opposite gender, as perverted and twisted. It is morally degrading for a girl to be repeatedly cat-called and teased. Forget the moral aspects; it’s about decency and upbringing. To all these filth out there, your mother, your sister must be so proud indeed, to have a son who doesn’t respect them. Fun fact- did you know under Section 294- Singing, reciting or uttering any obscene song, ballad or words, in or near any public place, (https://aamjanata.com/eve-teasing-under-criminal-law/) is punishable with imprisonment or fine, or both. (To all those men getting offended, please read the disclaimer at the beginning). Above all, this happening in an institution of education, where they are supposed to be educated and develop as professionals, irony, that it’s more like developing into professional, male chauvinistic pigs. My  intentions in writing this was to make people aware, in my college especially so, that despite all the precautions they take, these precautions referring to restricting the girls more and more (because apparently, girls are supposed to be docile, not go out and have fun and stay jailed), is hardly having any affect. In fact, it is only succeeding in suppressing the basic rights of the girl. Do you realise, that after completion they will have to go out into the world? Let’s see how that will go, a girl restricted inside a campus gets placed in a metro city. But, wait for it, here’s the showstopper, she is so freaking afraid to step out of where she lives, because well, for four years that’s what she has been taught, restriction! Instead of developing us as individuals this practice is simply suppressing us. This is just pertaining to the how girls are treated and looked upon by the authorities. They will not speak out, unless you listen! So listen, please.

My other, slightly misguided perhaps, intention, was solely for the benefit of those disgusting boys out there who are the truest form of illiteracy. I hope I have hit a nerve or two, or maybe (preferable so!) all of them. You are, simply put, disgusting creatures, insecure in whom they are and lack any basic social skills. If you think, it is cool to go and behave like that, then think again. No girl out there will ever respect you.

I was going to thank the men out there who know how to behave decently, but guess what?! I realized I am writing this to simply bring out the truth, not to satisfy anyone’s ego. I refuse to feel obliged to thank men for behaving like humans. If you do, then well, good for you! You are a human, nothing less or else, is expected.

Disclaimer: The above article was not written to intentionally hurt someone. Any offence caused is well, honestly, not regretted. If you have any comments, suggestions, any discord of opinions, then kindly do not spam or leave disruptive comments. Just mail me all your hate mail, if you have any, and if you don't receive a reply, well, you probably know why. Anyway, cheers!