As the time of day approached when the sun cast away the cloak of night, even before the first golden rays of sunshine could reach the red-brick roof of the Singh’s house in a quaint town in Rajasthan, Nina Singh had already started her day. Even so, waking up early had never been a hassle for her. It was almost a habit, considering that she had been doing it for almost all her life – as a little girl, her day began by helping her younger brother, Ryan gets ready for school, following which she packed lunch, usually sandwiches, for both of them and ultimately, gave her ailing grandmother her daily medicines. There were days when Nina’s mother would have to work extra shifts at the biscuit factory in their town to earn some extra money, being the only earning member of the family. On such days she used to take care of Ryan like a mother; helping him with his homework, cooking dinner, and putting him to bed.
Even after two decades, not a lot had changed for Nina. She woke up with a smile on her face, prepared to do all her chores. She cooked delicious paranthas for her husband and son, Rohan, and helped him get ready for school. As she headed out of the house to drop Rohan off at school, holding her office bag in one hand, and Rohan’s hand in the other, she received an emergency call from the hospital. There had been another case of lung damage, the second one in three days. Nina was the head doctor of the most prestigious hospital in their town. Owing to experience, she knew that it was due to the Covid-19 virus, which had put the entire world under its wrath. Nina hurried to the hospital. While doing so, a multitude of thoughts crossed her mind.
Since the outbreak, Nina’s primary concern was the health and safety of her family members. Her family, undeterred by it all, stood beside Nina and made adjustments to another room for her. Nonetheless, Nina still had to perform her daily chores, making it almost impossible to take out time for herself. Not just this, their neighbors had started treating Nina’s family incongruously, indifferent to the fact that it was due to healthcare workers like Nina that the country was able to limit the spread of the virus.
As she reached the hospital, she couldn’t help but notice that although female doctors and nurses were working hard to save the lives of patients with as much determination and willpower as their male counterparts, there was a huge difference in their salaries.
Nina herself had to go through many hardships to reach the position she was at now. Even though she was the most experienced doctor in the hospital, the position of the head was held by her male colleague who wasn’t as experienced as she was. As luck would have it, the board finally acknowledged her dedication and prowess and she was given her due.
Fortunately, the surgery that Nina performed was a success!
As the sun set, Nina was ready to don the hat of an affectionate mother and a loving wife again. She headed home to be with her family and share her joy with them.
The excerpt of Nina is not a new story. In India, women face challenges and difficulties every step of the way. From the very beginning, they’re made to believe that their primary focus should be to take care of their families and nurture them, foregoing their own ambitions and dreams, making them assume that female injustice is normal. The patriarchy has to be rooted out from the cause, only then will both genders will have ample opportunities with respect towards each other and most importantly be considered EQUAL!
– By Keshav and Raya