वैद्यो नारायणो हरिः – And its greater radius.

It was late night and my cousin brother had called in for a personal reason. He serves at Ayurvedic Department of Medicine.

Most of us have personally known people who are relentlessly working at the medical department, and from my own family, there are a couple of them in this ring today.

What I wanted to highlight was – Along with doctors, nurses, there are thousands in the medical department who are untiringly serving at the backend to connect the dots.

My brother is in emergency cell and is suppose to ensure the numbers in quarantine, responsible to facilitate to various departments including police, BBMP, Panchayat offices in Bangalore rural and surrounding departments. He takes care of Infra, Administration, and reports with multitasking on facilitating emergency calls. Beyond it, they need to stand as a backup for any situation.

While he could squeeze some time to talk to me, the entire period was distressing that most of us hardly know the truth. Let me quote a few:

-      They are required to be in PPE’s all the time which is more suffering than anything amidst summer. There are different varieties depending on exposure to the risk.

• It's challenging to eat, drink water and attend to natural calls with PPE’s and every time once they remove, it gets disposed of.
• As the number of PPE's are less, they are managing to use it for a prolonged period for more than eight hours in a stretch.
• He has lost 8kgs in the last 45 days.
• They hardly sleep for 5/6 hours in a day or less than that in a staggered fashion.
•  He has come home only four times in the last 45 days to show his face for 15minutes and he did not get inside.
• Everybody working in the department is required to undergo a test for themselves once a week.

-      Post all this, as things would come in control, they would be quarantined for 21days before they can get back to normal life.

This is just not the story of someone, but everyone who is working front end and back end.

Think about it. If we had any of our family members or a friend serving so tenaciously for the better good – can we even think of hurting them in our wildest of dreams??

Note: This article was penned during corona pandemic hit starting from December 2019 in China, spread across the globe. In India, the things started getting bad since April 2020 and it is been long chaos in the history of humankind in spite of being so technologically advanced compared to all previous centuries. 

Thappad - Is it just a movie slap?

I just completed watching the movie ‘Thappad’ on amazon prime. It is 1:40 am and bells are ringing in my mind, thoughts are flowing relentlessly. Feels like a gush of emotions are storming my brain. Memories from my childhood – those lessons of social studies thirty springs ago which I read on female feticide, infanticide, inequality for a girl child, biased in education, discernment at the workplace,….  & even today I teach my son the same chapters – discrimination & biasing.  I looked at the mirror adjacent to my study table and said -  Have we really changed ??

As I stepped into my adolescence  - there was this time I witnessed a series of dowry based movies. Women being burnt, abused, tortured and the list is countless across all Indian languages.  Not far – the recent ‘Jabariya Jodi’ is as well based on dowry reflecting that it still exists, and we all know it does.  So – Have we really changed ??

I have been a very obliging daughter to my parents. I was also told to compromise, adapt, digest, and succumb to demands. I am still expected to be tolerant irrespective of preferences. And when there was a juncture in my life to be vocal about my choices – I had to go through both external and internal struggles and strifes. When I recall it today, I had a few pillars who gave their shoulders to lean on. But eventually who listened to my woes, came to rescue, stood with me were females.  Probably females connect to emotions than a male brain. Point is - there are exceptionally countable few men who can stand for women. Even today – they prefer to stand a mile away.

I have been reading this book ‘Lady you’re the boss’ - & I love this author, she almost makes me feel that she was witnessing snippets of my life secretly from a career-oriented and audacious working women standpoint.  She is able to write and I am able to relate – because both of us are connecting - either have experienced or witnessed an experience. What she narrates a decade ago is valid even today.

• Women are paid less and are evaluated to be delivered below the mark
• Women need to ask for proper hikes, else it just isn’t given
• Women are judged on her looks and appearance
• And if you have been in senior management, you have assorted combats.

Everyday struggles against biasing, demand for promotions & pays, domestic balancing, motherhood guilt – she is still expected to keep up the equity as it is her choice to be career-oriented. Her perpetual war is on from decades.

It makes me think – Have we really changed ??

Let me state as is – from Financial Express dated December 2019 – It is less than 3% of global VC who invest in women-led teams. Isn’t this a Thappad as well?

As an entrepreneur – let me assert – even today many of my friends, particularly males don’t believe in what I do. There are few who outrightly ask ‘Oh! Are you still running your business?’ And there are some silent spectators whispering within – Let’s see what will she do? And those words ‘Oh! & Let’s see’ carry the feelings of either insecurity or animosity.  Yet again, have we really changed?

Women quench her thirst feeling the feel that she is sacred wanted and she is an embodiment of earth & nature to hold all the pains and pangs. On the contrary, men are bought up with the sense that they are protectors & providers.  Changes seem erstwhile and ephemeral. 

If you have reached here, irrespective of gender, drill deep and be fair to ask yourself – Have we changed?? Or Can we change ??