Happy Women's Day, Every Day!

Every day is deserving of a celebration of women, and every woman deserves to be celebrated every day...

I went to bed last night after reading several International Women's Day wishes sent to me at midnight. I awoke to the beeps of IWD greetings. Whether I was watching television channels and OTT during my breakfast, surfing social media networking sites before leaving the office, or listening to the radio on my way to work, I was constantly bombarded with advertisements for special Women's Day discounts for all women. At work, all my colleagues wished, celebrated by cutting cake, flower bouquets and gifts were distributed, interesting activities were planned, and a special meal was served, as is customary for Corporates. It was, of course overwhelming and made me feel extremely special and proud of my existence. 

But, on the contrary, I also noticed that not all women are as privileged as I am! The woman at the corner of the street who sold flower bouquets was not offered one for herself. The mother who greeted 'good day' to her children everyday was not wished once on this special day. The wife who woke up next to her husband was not being treated special on this day. So, my question is, are these overflowing wishes on this day intended solely for select women & for select time? Are these biased efforts are taken merely to 'show off' & reality is not how we perceive it? 

The women who spend 84 percent of working hours on unpaid labour do not have any social or public recognition; even worse their families fail to recognize their work. In a very lame language, it’s often said what a woman who is a homemaker sits at her home the whole day. Truly heartbreaking for the ones who work day-in and day-out to make other’s lives easy. 

The questions to be put up here are:

1. Why did we, as a society, ever lack the same appreciation and the same recognition for our women who also have been doing the same thing with the same dedication towards their husbands, children and families?

2. Why is all the praise and appreciation to the set of women who chose to work out & be financially independent but not to ones who chose to give up profession or career for the sake of other family members & for their journey of achieving success? Is this not a social achievement in itself? 

On the other hand, the very notion of validating a woman is itself a manifestation of the enormous gender difference. It is demoralising that the women in our society still require other people's approval in order to validate their existence, despite attempts dating back nearly 100 years now.

Celebrating womanhood just on this day is not enough. Everyday must be made special because she's not only the Almighty's creation, but also a creator. Respect her, educate her, treat her with dignity, recognise her accomplishments, appreciate her career goals, empower her when she qualifies. On this day, not only an accomplished woman needs to be honoured. But, through education & work, every other underprivileged woman should be raised.

As a proud & content woman myself, I would ask every other woman in the world to stop seeking validation from others. It is our right to be who we want to be. Work towards it and live your life freely. Therefore, turn your focus towards yourself. Start embracing your choices, body, achievements and appreciate yourself. Now, dear women, it is time to remove the cobweb of patriarchy and own your life. Look at yourself in the mirror and thank yourself for every struggle you won to get the respect and freedom that you proudly own. Remember that you are already a relevant human being in the world and only you can decide how empowered and powerful that relevance grows into. We have come a long way in our own struggles against society. Now we have the right to seek education & empowerment. Let us not pull ourselves back by undermining our decisiveness. If you don’t believe in your own verdicts about yourself, no one else will.

Happy Women's Day EVERYDAY❣️

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