Mard – Although patriarchy exists in all countries, it is highly visible in India.
The plights of Indian women are well-known. However, if you look closely, you will notice that it is not just the fairer sex that bears the brunt of injustice and bad decisions.
Men face their struggles and on occasions, they are left to fight alone in a battle. This battle though is not a physical one, but it is an inner battle or a fight against the norms of the society.
Let us look at the struggles that Indian men go through that are not spoken of enough.
In India, especially in the rural regions, parents try hard to toughen up their male offspring. To them, it is a crime to be emotional and every time that their son gets sentimental, he has to bear the wrath of lengthy speeches of ‘being a man’.
Mard, Men are also perceived as the gender that brings food on the table.
This puts a great deal of burden on them because not every man is paid alike. Where some enjoy the material pleasures of life because they earn higher income, the others have to live a middle class life, strive to save money and compromise on leisure.
The responsibility part goes to ridiculous levels, when Mard is expected to be the dominant one in the relationship.
When it comes to making decisions, it is expected of them to have the final say. Besides that, paying children’s tuition fees and electricity/phone bills is the man’s responsibility. However, the irony at the end of the day is seeing both genders as the same.
Men should be good with machineries.
Men love cars. These are clichés that have existed in the country and make men subject to lots of criticism. When some guy does not know to change the tyre of a car, they are criticised for the same.
It is also assumed that a man is up to no good. Have you ever noticed that when the society sees a man approaching a woman, it thinks that he is up to some mischief?
When it comes to marriage, parental pressure is not restricted just to women. All parents desire to have grandchildren. Some of them psychologically harass their child into marrying and bearing them a grandchild soon.
Are you aware of the fact that men in India are sexually abused, too? Just like women, they cannot talk about it, but the reason varies slightly. Men are seen as the superior sex and believed to not succumb under pressure. If they speak about rape, they are seen as weak.
Domestic violence is another issue that is restricted not just to women. There have been instances where men have been subject to physical abuse by their spouse.
When a Mard, man marries a non-working woman, the society does not seem to have a problem. On the contrary, an unemployed man marrying a working woman is seen as a taboo.
