“Oh, is your daughter-in-law going to office?”, asked a neighbour to another who just welcomed her daughter-in-law last week. The mother-in-law replied, “Yes and she does all housework too”. This short conversation made me laugh first and then question the still regressive mentality of Indian society. It’s as if housework is women’s responsibility only and job/career is just an additional work that women take to lead their and family’s lives in a better way. Women are meant to take care of the house and men are meant to earn from outside job – why is this thinking still prevalent? Why does housework or even office work need to be gender-specific? Who gave the right to the society to decide what a man and a woman has to do?
Women shouldn’t be pressured to work at any place – be it home or office. If you see, a homemaker is 24/7 at work to help other people of the house complete their work on time and live a healthy life. So, a housewife shouldn’t be underestimated. Similarly, a career woman works as much as an housewife because she has to do her daily routine along with the job responsibilities. Honestly speaking, be it a homemaker or career woman, they are always at work. No woman should be compared with other as every woman is unique in her own way. If the woman wants to lead the house, let her. If the woman wants to work at home plus office, allow her. But the work shouldn’t make them weak or frustrated in their lives. Work should be an enlightening force for leading a better quality of life.
We are already in 2020 and still we live by the ideals of 18th century, which had rigid societal norms. But now even after so much evolution of mankind and we having Artificial Intelligence as a career option, still we think that women should work – be at home or office or both. If you argue with older generation, they would give you ‘n’ number of reasons to justify their outdated thinking. But me, being a progressive thinker, totally feel that no law or rulebook should tell anyone to do anything out of force or manipulation. Everyone – be it a man or a woman – have the birthright to do what they want to do in their lives. If a man cooks at home, his respect will not decrease and if a woman runs the house with her income, the man shouldn’t be judged. It’s up to each of them to decide and grow in their lives, their way!