NOT YOUR RIGHT

All she ever wanted

was respect and affection

but sadly,

even that was a tragedy abysmal

 

This story is not of a single person,

it comprises an entity of individuals

it’s not a tragedy in gear,

it’s a lullaby everyone should hear

 

It reflects upon a story of You, Me and Her

of all ladies across the globe

who swallow every single insult

just to look for an ounce of affection

 

This is not a mere story for us to pity,

it is what we can recognize as our

never-ending ‘reality’

 

SLAP!

she heard the sound ring through the whole house,

as she sprawled painfully on the ground

shock resonated through her body

 unable to register the danger looming ahead

 

She watched in budding horror

at the man she had once loved

who now assailed her

for a mistake she had never done

 

She cried for hours later

at her own helpless attire

she missed her mother’s warm cwtch

so, she called her parents

who told her to forget it thus

 

Although it wasn’t a mistake to justify,

rather a wrong to crucify

she couldn’t muster up the courage

to admit that,

it was never his right to begin with

 

He returned home later

said it wouldn’t happen again

she wished to scrunch up his shirt collar

saying ‘How dare he do that'

but she faintly heard her parents justify his ‘decision’

so, she just nodded meekly

and gave him another chance for revision

 

She stayed awake that night

cause she knew this wasn’t the end

rather only the beginning

of a prison sentence

issued to her for life

 

At another house down the block,

a woman is holding her head

and begging him to stop

 

She cried harshly

feeling the world tilt

as she collapsed on the floor

sick from the emotional torture

that had no border to bother with

 

Another day, Another lady

feeling helpless at her own identity

what use is her intelligence, she wondered

when she can’t save herself from this abuse

that should never happen with anyone

 

She does not believe in divorce

But even if she did,

she has a family to support

she knows she needs a shelter place

otherwise, she might just get killed

but she often wonders

if it is not better to die

than to put up with this

 

Another lady

breathes an agonizing breath

the feeling of terror chokes her

while watching his menacing stance nearby

 

The glint of cruelty in his eyes,

makes her gulp hard

she closes the door tightly

so that her child

can’t hear her flinch hard

she hopes that her daughter would’ve been born at a different time,

when such abuse would not have been normalized

 

It’s been a year

since she’s been in the house

she sees the headlines

‘Pandemic Lockdown fuelled Domestic violence worldwide’

flash across the television screen of her house

 

She looks at her husband who’s watching the screen

hoping to see some guilt between his frow

but he only continues to munch on his popcorn

and changes the channel without a doubt

 

It’s an important step

to take the campaign

‘An end to abuse’

forward

 

However, an even important step

is to teach our children,

the future,

the correct morals to live by

 

To our girls and boys let us teach:

that your partner is not your property

they are living beings

and abusing them is not a right you are born with

never let your partner touch you without consent

your body is your right

and battering you

is neither their right

nor an acceptable deed to live by

 

Neither boys nor girls

have the right to abuse each other

this is the mindset

I intend to propel forward with

 

Let’s put an end to this

derogatory normality

that teaches women and men to

compromise to reality

 

Because

my body is my right

and abusing me is

Not your right

                                           WRITTEN BY

                             NIDHI KAMALAPURKAR