How I ‘Beat the Heat’ !!

So, all of you dissolving in the Bambai rains can’t even imagine the ‘state of affairs’ in Delhi. The temperature here reaches 45 degrees. The city is like an open furnace. You could keep your chicken on the car bonnet and it’d grill. You cannot have a cold water shower ever. You can however, reel in the pleasure that you get to have a steam bath everyday. Frankly, the only good part perhaps is the butter melts quickly.

And within all this torture, sometimes it plays ‘powercut games’ with you. It’s like your own little personal hell stimulator. And especially when it happens post 11 o clock at night, I see a justification why the electricity board office would keep their telephone lines off. They definitely don’t want a downpour of abuses.

Basically I feel helpless sometimes, literally counting seconds. I have pondered the idea of walking to a 24*7 store for a coffee. I console myself with a walk on the terrace, that I am finally burning few more calories. I have stared with all possible jealousy at the far-off metro station which is still lighted up, despite the services having shut down by 11pm.

They are perhaps right when they say it’s all in the mind. One a similar night, I stood on my terrace gazing down at the lonely road. I saw three sights, each of them a story. I saw a truck full of bricks pass-by; two men sleeping on the bed of those bricks. Another man cross up to the divider, opened his folding bed, placed it there right below the streetlight, settled himself on it and quietly dozed off. Two men by the coconut water stall, opened up their mosquito net, set it up with bricks, crawled inside and perhaps within seconds, dozed off to another land.

I quietly went down to my room, got a bedsheet and 3 cushions, arranged them on the seating slab on my terrace, lay down staring at the stars. It wasn’t that bad after all.

That’s the only way you beat the heat. It’s all in the mind after all.

I haven’t yet been raped- I am Lucky

We are all affected by the brutality of the gangrape. There have been a zillion reports and stats. The shameful and disturbing truth in the midst of all this hullabaloo is that women really do not feel secure in Delhi. Delhi has a different definition of ‘Lucky’- If you have traveled in Delhi, roamed around the streets and haven’t managed to get raped, you are LUCKY.

It does take me back- reflecting on the 8 years I have lived in Delhi as a single woman- how things have changed and how situations have forced to alter my priorities. Most of the other woman in Delhi will agree with me, We have all faced harassment- in some form or the other. Incidences have taught us how not to stand facing the men’s side seats while travelling in a bus, how to pretend fake conversations on phone while commuting in an auto late evening, being pestered by well-wishers to carry pepper spray, to keep an eye on all men walking beside us on the streets and beware of any negative signals.

I wanted to experience my share of late night movies, funky parties, crazy night-outs, late night dinners and I did. But on not less than 10 occasions out of these, I did feel threatened. I realized I was chased, another time a car blocked my taxi, I heard men screaming out rates to take me home, leave apart the zillion times when they would stare at me and hold their gaze like some hungry bastards. But I have not been raped yet- Perhaps I am lucky and blessed.

I heard pretty much everyone with a mouth, giving me advice- what not to wear, when not to step out, and how not to be loud in public places lest I attract attention, to avoid eye contact. I didn’t want to be armed, I didn’t want to go and learn self defense. All I wanted was to feel safe and not feel Jerry-like continuously living in the fear of Tom chasing and attacking me.

7 years down- I am still in Delhi. The situation hasn’t improved by an inch. It has rather gotten worse. I have had to learn- the art of surviving. I rather call friends for house parties or visit their houses than go out to a pub. I’d rather be ‘safe’ than go for that fun. I don’t give a second thought asking any of my guy friends to drop me home when I am late. I’d rather be ‘safe’ than hesitate asking favors. I reserve my dresses only to be worn at at huge get-togethers. I’d rather be ‘safe’ than wear what I like.

I have been forced to adjust in all these years, each time giving away a part of the freedom I would rather have enjoyed. I have missed out on many things that I otherwise would have loved doing. But then I made a choice to be ‘safe’ than sorry. I was forced to make this choice. I am a ‘LUCKY’ woman who has managed to lived in Delhi without yet having been raped !! @samta09