ENUM NASEER - How the Aurat March is questioning motherhood and the private domain in Pakistan

By Dilip -
There is an old Punjabi proverb ‘aata gun’ni aen tay hilni kyun aen?’ which loosely translates as: why must you move when you knead the dough? It conjures up a very specific image: a woman sitting on the kitchen floor, with a huge silver parat (circular tray) in front of her – inside the tray, a precise mixture of flour and water. Fists rolled into balls, she kneads the dough mechanically, throwing her body into the movement. Even though the woman is apparently fulfilling her ‘duty’ in a private space, she is also being monitored and surveilled. And then, someone – oblivious to or apathetic to her efforts – very obviously waiting for her to manifest her destiny in the form of a well-cooked roti, turns around and irritably asks her: aata gun’ni aen tay hilni kyun aen?
HAMNA ZUBAIR - Qandeel Baloch is dead because we hate women who don't conform / When it comes to honour killing, India is neck and neck with Pakistan

As a proverb, the question is ironic – used in response to an illogical demand: how can one prepare rotis without kneading flour or moving? It highlights irrationality in responding to a wide range of absurd demands or critiques, and is particularly evocative given that the preparation of rotis is so common in Southasian households. But as a cultural text the proverb is also an insight into collective thought and a commentary on entitlement and the gendering of spaces. When women march for their freedoms once a year at the Aurat March – a series of protests in different Pakistani cities to observe International Women’s Day –  the backlash ranges from: Why not have a modest resistance instead? Why must the slogans be so bold and belligerent? Why must there be so much hatred for men – don’t you have to live with them? ... https://www.himalmag.com/taking-the-zenana-to-the-streets-2020/?utm_source=NewsletterSubscribers&utm_campaign=12fb7c9132-Newsletter+May+10_Survey_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_949b3d6c7a-12fb7c9132-195536737

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