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'Taking bottom-slapping to court is farcical'

Journalist Tavleen Singh recently sparked off a controversy when she wrote in her weekly column in the Indian Express that Indian feminism is not about the "bottom-slapping" of Rupan Deol Bajaj. Such a relatively trivial incident, she suggested, does

Outlook News Desk

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You have been accused of betraying the feministcause by your article on Rupan Deol Bajaj.

But I have never been a feminist. In fact, as far as thewomen’s movement is concerned, I am an outcast. I’ve never been part of thesisterhood. I don’t believe in exclusive women’s clubs and I don’t believein exclusively gender- related issues. I believe that women’s rights are human rightsand the struggle for a better life concerns us all, not just as women. Although I was oneof the first to report cases of dowry deaths, I have never been part of the women’smovement. As for this case of bottom-slapping, I think it is quite obscene that such acase should be taken to the Supreme Court. There is a different kind of women’smovement going on in the villages which urban feminists are not as concerned with as theyshould be.

What is your problem with contemporary feminism?

I find the activities of these women far too upper middleclass, far too imitative of the West. So much fuss about a bot
tom-slappingincident— it’s farcical. If you ask me, it’s this obsession with politicalcorrectness which is at the root of it all; all this fuss about sexual harassment is whathappens in America. Even the Europeans don’t fully understand it. I was shocked atthe manner in which this case concerning Rupan Deol Bajaj was reported in the press.

There are women all over India who are carrying on spontaneous struggles who do notfind a voice in the press simply because they are not in touch with these upper classwomen’s groups. These urban women are far too busy going on the conference circuit toChina or Rio. And this terrible look of having to be like a tub of lard with oilyhair— its like a uniform. As far as journalism is concerned , I could never be a partof ‘purdah’ journalism or ‘zenana’ journalism as I call it. The ideathat women should only write about women. Of course, there are exceptions. Madhu Kishwar,for example, is someone who I think is genuinely doing good work for women’s welfare.

You said there is a different sort of women’s movement going on.

Yes, there is. I remember a case in 1987 in Banda village when a woman had been rapedby six policemen. Her case was taken up by a lower middle class group of women whosucceeded in bringing justice for the woman. So women in the villages really need thesupport of urban, educated groups, but often such help is not forthcoming. All this talkof contraceptives... but what about basic health care? What about drinking water? Wheredoes a woman go if she needs medical help? Some are doing good work, no doubt, like theMahila Samakhya organisation. Unfortunately they are not talked about as much as theyshould be. I know a village where women were trained to be handpump mechanics, so that allthe handpumps in the village are now operated by women. Yet urban feminists once made afuss about a certain type of panties. There are so many other issues to think about.

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Such as?

In another village a group of women actully brought a rapist to justice. After thepolice had failed to arrest him, the women got together, blackened his face and paradedhim on a donkey. That’s a case of women in action. That’s why I think taking acase of bottom- slapping to the Supreme Court is so ridiculous. I once told Madhu Kishwarthat supplies of surplus grain were being devoured by rats. I said, I’m not anactivist, but a journalist, but why don’t you organise a movement with women to raiseawareness about this? These are the issues before us.

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