I am a daughter,
A sleepy Netflix- addicted daughter,
A daughter of a progressive working woman
And granddaughter of yet another progressive Facebook loving woman.
Who challenged patriarchy all their lives.
Then came the lockdown
And suddenly became charge of the house.
Woke up and cooked
Swept and mopped
Learnt new dishes to make loved ones happy
Washed all the plates and the glasses and the spoons.
While my mother worked
And my father sat on his rocking chair
Telling me I did everything wrong
This became my routine for the week
And for the weeks after that.
Now as I lay on my bed my with little cuts and burns on my hands
Looking at my boring brown fan
My mind ponders over the question
What changed?
The girl who hated household chores was doing it submissively.
The women who taught her to defy patriarchy
Also taught her to her defiance will be ignored,
Her hatred won't matter,
They also taught her to be meek,
Taught her to bow down to patriarchy.
- Malavika Mohan