Green Bangles- #BarAThon

Posted in Aks Corner, BAR-a-THON, Gender Equality, Love & Relationships, Parenting, Self Love, Sexism, Short Stories

Meera looked at her barren hands, her forehead bereft of sindoor and bindi, the pale colored saree – they kept screaming at her “You are a widow, an unfortunate, unlucky soul. The symbols of marriage that once adorned you have now all been taken away. What use are they when the person in whose honor you wore them is no longer in this world?”

She remembered the first time she wore green bangles on her wedding day, the red color paithani saree  and jewellery she was adorned with, the mangal sutra and sindoor which became her lifelong companion till this day when cruel destiny snatched everything away from her.

She looked at the green bangles , a forlorn look in her eyes. Her daughter stood beside her. Little Asha all of 11, looked at her mother with innocent eyes “Aai why don’t you wear your bangles? What has Baba got to do with it?”

Is a woman’s life and happiness tied solely to a man? The symbols of a married woman – when a woman refuses to adorn them does that make her any less of a wife? Why is everything snatched away from her the moment her husband breathes his last? Doesn’t she have a right to decide for herself? Does she cease to be a wife?

Meera picked up the green bangles wiping a tear and wore them. I choose to wear them for myself, for my Asha. A woman’s life is tied to no one.  Her destiny is in her hands.

(This post has been written for the second edition of  BAR-A-THON, the fortnight-long blogging marathon for bloggers everywhere!  My theme is “7 colours of the rainbow ROYGBIV”. I present a Flash Fiction in 300 words  based on one colour  for each day of the challenge and blend it with something that personifies that colour)

(Post image courtesy: Bollywoodshaadis.com)

 

barathon

Published by Akshata Ram

Chartered Accountant, Story Teller, Dreamer, Voracious Reader, Blogger, Mommy to a little munchkin, Shopaholic, Day Dreamer.Passionate about my career in the corporate world and aspire to break the glass ceiling, at the same time nurture my passion for writing. My niche area is short stories, I also write on parenting, sexism, life's experiences, micro blogs and flash fiction. I have won the best Parenting blog post at mycity4kids.com the largest parenting website in India, 4 times and several of my posts have been published in the #MostPopular category on this site garnering millions of views. I also write on Bonobology, Rivo Kids, Women's Web and Youth Ki Awaaz. My blog has been chosen as the Top Indian Blogs for the years 2018-2019,2020 by TopIndianBlogs website and found a place in the prestigious Top 22 Indian Literary Blogs in 2020 @TopIndianBlogs.

21 thoughts on “Green Bangles- #BarAThon”

  3. Wonderful Akshata ❤ even I believe in this, what we do, wear, or our way of life is for us, because that's what we want and no one can dictate that.

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. You knowwhat? it is very relevant topic because there is so much social stigma around what a widow should wear or do. But recently I have also met ladies who chose not to go white when their husbands breathed there last and their families too supported them.
    Thanks for this touching story!

    Liked by 1 person

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  8. A beautiful story filled with lesson Akshata. We often forget that a woman is human and is an individual who shouldn’t be tied to a man or society’s definition what she should be. Thumbs up for this power packed narration and reflection:)

    Liked by 1 person

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  9. It’s heart breaking to see how widows are expected to give up on their identities, happiness and joys in life. She has to adapt to her expected stigmatized cultural role. A sad reality for so many women.

    Liked by 1 person

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