Of Swaps And #ShareTheLoad...

Student life is full of curiosity. I too have been so, throughout my journey so far. Probably, this factor brought me to the Engineering stream where I am at the verge of completing my journey and stepping into the professional world to start a new journey. When I was too young I used to feel a lot for my mother who was a teacher by profession. She would wake up early in the morning, finish house chores, get ready, and rush to her school. On the way she would be planning so many things that she had to do after reaching home later in the day. On her way back she would again be recapitulating her agenda of the rest of the day, giving her plan a better shape putting timelines to each of her tasks in the agenda. I am sure her plans never reached completion as per the stipulated timelines because by the time she would reach home, there would be ten more unannounced, unarmed and unanticipated tasks waiting to be added in her task-list.

#ShareTheLoad was not even in the air during those days in my family or society. Rather it was completely opposite. Men who would share the load of house chores with their wives would be criticized and mocked for performing the tasks that are meant only for women. Such was the gap between the genders as far as the home chores were concerned. And it was so wide that nobody would dare to fill this gap in such a biased atmosphere around. When I reached my secondary level studies I started feeling strongly about it. I decided to revolt against the system. After all, it was important to light a candle at home before making an effort to bring light to the society.

It was fairly easy to take my brother in confidence. We decided to collaborate to bring a change at home in a big way. The plan was to change our father's mindset to break the barriers of inequality at home. We convinced Dad to swap places with Mom for two days and he agreed quite easily thinking her life would be fun for him. He used to boast a lot about how loaded he used to be at office and how his boss relied so much on him for all important tasks. He had an impression that Mom was not as loaded as him in spite of observing her doing all chores related to the house, each day. But those two days were more than enough for him to realize that his boasting about a loaded office was actually a fact at home too. He, and in fact, the whole family was completely reliant on Mom for every small or big thing at home. That day onward, Dad promised to bring a big change at home and #ShareTheLoad with Mom in every house chore. There’s been no looking back, ever since.

~~~

I am taking part in the #ShareTheLoad Challenge with Ariel and Akshara at BlogAdda.

Being The Change, To #ShareTheLoad...

The task is to inculcate the message in the next generation. The message is about breaking the walls of inequality between the genders and sharing the load of life and house chores equally. For years, it has been about the woman of the house owning the responsibility encompassing all responsibilities within the four walls of the house. It has been all rooted in our senses, heart, blood, and mind that a man is not supposed to contribute in house work right since our childhood. That is what we are observing for last generations.

Prevalent thought, men will become women if they do laundry, or cleaning of the house. And those who have guts to defy this thought have had to face taunts within the family, society, office, and where not about performing feminine tasks.

Nobody bothered to break these barriers created around women. On one hand, the load of responsibilities kept weighing in on women. They were allowed to step outside, join office, earn, contribute to family income, work full time; but still the responsibilities inside the house remained with them. They had to manage it on their own without any help from men of the house. And it went on silently. Women never raised a voice against it. Those who dared to, were silenced. Even when kids of the house raised their voice against it they were silenced with a reason that it is what it is supposed to be like.

Probably it had to be absorbed in the minds of those who felt it to be wrong. But for how long? Gradually the demon of inequality had been raised so high to a level that it became difficult to resist the abolition of gender inequality by people on the other side who were favoring this notion rather than opposing it.

Being a teacher, I knew that the easiest way of doing a thing is 'doing' rather than preaching about it and wasting time. I started this chain of inculcating the message from my school, to my students itself. The benefit of starting from school was that at the same time, this thought-provoking message will reach many homes together. Even if it creates and impact in half of those homes, it will mean a lot.

I started teaching my students about why they should not tolerate gender inequality at home and how to overcome it so subtly and positively that the tides are forced to change their direction on their own. The students understood it faster than my male colleagues at school. A number of relevant posters were made by my students to spread the word around. They even started this mission at their respective homes in their own small ways.

These students started sharing their stories in school with me, on how they gradually offloaded this jinx out of their parent's minds. Raghu, my student in Class 7 told me that he helped his mother in washing the utensils last night. Vidya, my student in Class 9 told me how her brother amazed their parents the last evening and forced them to start thinking about breaking all the barriers when her father called her to clean the table and her brother did it despite her father telling him that it is not the job of the boys or men of the house. The impact was invincible when her father declared that now onward the laundry of the house was on him to #ShareTheLoad with her working mother.

So many stories started pouring in day after day. Each one was accompanied by unique and amazing realizations. The ripple was strong enough to reach and impact the male colleagues who also ended up supporting the notion to #ShareTheLoad.

~~~

I am taking part in the #ShareTheLoad Challenge with Ariel and Akshara at BlogAdda. 

Hum Saath Saath Hain For #LaundryGoesOddEven!

Those were the days

I would wake up

well before him

being busy in routine chores

He would feel proud to be

sleeping a couple of hours extra,

feeling fulfilled, satisfied.

Those were the days

He would come from work

Change, Relax, and Watch JukeBox,

while I would come from work

around the same time

Change, Get on the job without a pause

Those were the days

when eating, relaxing, leisure were

part of his share of life

between the two of us

Dusting, Cleaning, Washing, Cooking

were part of mine.

But one fine day he changed all of a sudden without any reason, without anything reasonably alarming happening around. I probed but all in vain. I finally asked him what was the reason of such a drastic change in him and he came back with a story. Few days back he was tired at work though there was no work pressure as such, and he thought to relax under a tree on the way home. He stopped the car near Lodhi Garden and sat inside the garden under a tree. 

The cool wind blowing and sitting right under the shade of that dense tree opened his inner eyes as he had a strange feeling inside. He felt about this huge difference in our lives. Why everything to be done is my job, and why everything to be consumed is his, was the cluster of thoughts dwindling in his mind.

There was a paradigm shift in his mindset, and in our life in parallel. He decided to share every job at home with me in all chores with no gender bias. He removed the label from all chores at home and started offloading them from my shoulders thereupon. 

He felt that when I am as busy as him and as much on the move, then why he should expect me to shoulder complete responsibility of the household. On top of it a bit of guilt that arose in his mind was because I never complained, or asked him to share, by contributing his efforts in the work rather than sitting, relaxing, sipping coffee, reading newspaper, watching TV, or listening to music.

That is when it is not only #LaundryGoesOddEven in our happily-turned-happy home but a lot more beyond that. He has been able to change everybody's mindset at home by becoming a load-sharer, work-contributor, and change-maker at home. The earlier thought of everybody's clothes turning out as good as new only when I, the woman of the house, wash them, has changed. 

He brought the new Ariel Matic 'Share the Load' pack ensuring that the stains vanish and our everyday best is at its gleaming best, no matter who does the laundry. In fact, at time, he offers to take the load even when it is my turn as per the Odd-Even calendar that came along with the Ariel Matic pack. The calendar ascertains the laundry days split right down the middle between him and me! The whole journey of our life has transformed from just 'Biwi ka kamaal' to 'Miyan-Biwi ka kamaal'. 

I must thank Ariel Matic and its #LaundryGoesOddEven that has brought a sea-change at our home. Splitting chores and household duties has not only reduced the time taken to do them but has also increased a substantial amount of quality time we get to spend with each other. That in turn has resulted in content family members, strengthened relationships and a happy home. 

We have reached a purely Win-Win situation. The life has got much easier when he started sharing 'my' load. My load has become 'our' load. The gender inequality is now eliminated in my family and gradually in extended family too. Not only that, the impact has started going to our friend's families too. So from one household the impact has not gone to many households at our end. 

~~~ 

I am taking part in the #LaundryGoesOddEven Challenge by Ariel India at BlogAdda

There's No Pride In Being Prejudiced!

The novel of manners is tasteful in its own right, focussing a reader's attention to conversations, customs, coming to face the mannerisms and an intrinsic thought process of another's social standing.

It would be befitting to pen down the novel of manners to make today's woman and man rub shoulders with the presence and prevalence of mirage-like idealisms in the times we inhabit, in order to balance the scales.

An individual's standing in the society, must, after all, not be parameterized by the degrees of success and failure to match up with a mere herd mentality, but by how uniquely distinguished one is, from the same! For, there's no fun in contorting oneself to fit the bill which has been tampered with, countless number of times.

Jane Austen is most noted as a novelist for presenting to her readers, a sense of realism in her writings, commenting and critiquing upon the perceptions of society, often marred by judgements over how an individual chose to represent themselves to the masses. Appreciation by scholars and readers alike has made Jane's works to be admired as classics over the last two centuries.

 I was compelled to think about how the novel of manners would be rephrased in today's times, thanks to a striking advert from Ariel, which spoke about gender bias being the 'talk of the town'. Given that, today's audience, ironically, is all empowered towards issues of the likes of 'women empowerment', I wondered how it would be for them to leave aside their Pride and shun all Prejudice.

How would it be for Austen's classic 'Pride and Prejudice' to be rewritten in tune to prevalent ideologies? Picture this rephrase by Yours Truly, for instance.

 ~~~ 

With its protagonist,  Elizabeth Bennet, the second of the five daughters of a gentlemanly Mr Bennet, Pride and Prejudice would proceed thus. Elizabeth's father, Mr Bennet, is a humble man who is mindful of his responsibilities towards his family. Elizabeth's mother, Mrs Bennet, on the other hand, is occupied with finding suitable husbands for her five daughters, who intend not to inherit much from their father. The eldest daughter, Jane Bennet's richness of character is attributed to her kindness and beauty; Elizabeth Bennet has in common with her father, the gift of witty, yet sarcastic perspective; Mary is identified as studious and devout while Catherine and Lydia are flirtatious and naive. The Bennet family puts up in Longbourn.

Elizabeth in particular, shares close ties with her father, closer than any of her sisters, not only because she's similar to him in most aspects but also owing to the fact that she has always been appreciative of his willingness to lend a shoulder to her mother over matters of the estate. As a matter of fact, she had, as a young girl, seen her father caring more about homely matters than her mother!

A certain Mr Bingley and Mr Darcy's arrival in the neighbourhood captures the attention of the Bennet family, who are on the lookout for prompt suitors! They had heard someone say that a wealthy, charismatic and sociable young bachelor, was moving into Netherfield Park in the neighbourhood. While Mr Bingley is well received, his friend Mr Darcy makes a less favourable impression as he appears proud and condescending at the first instance.

While Jane tends to like Mr Bingley's outspoken nature, she does not let the cat out of the bag yet. On the other hand, Mr Darcy disregards Elizabeth, who returns the gesture too.

On the first visit to Mr Bingley's house, Elizabeth and Jane are surprised by and appreciate the fact that the gentlemen have cared for the upkeep of their humble abode, all by themselves. One would not be able to say that there was not one lady in the house, for it to be so spick-and-span! Perhaps, both the men possessed the quality of not shying away from housework, apart from the appreciative characteristics to their personality too.

Elizabeth and Jane, thus end up admiring the men for being like their father in this respect, among themselves.

Mr Collins, a clergyman and heir to the Bennet estate, comes to visit the family. Mr Bennet and Elizabeth are much amused by his inadvertent fawning towards his employer, the noble Lady Catherine de Bourgh, as well as by his self-important and doctrinaire nature. Apparently, he arrives in Longbourn to choose a wife from among the Bennet sisters, and Jane is singled out, but because of Jane's budding romance with Mr Bingley, Mrs Bennet directs him toward Elizabeth.

After refusing his advances, much to her mother's disbelief and dread, Elizabeth instead familiarises with Mr Wickham, a militia officer who accuses Mr Darcy of severe mistreatment despite having been Darcy's father's favourite. The accusation and her attraction to Mr Wickham both increase Elizabeth's dislike of Mr Darcy.

The following morning, Mr Collins proposes to Elizabeth, who puts down the proposal. Mr Collins recovers and promptly becomes engaged to Elizabeth's close friend Charlotte Lucas, who is a homely woman. Collins thus puts forward the notion of most men aiming for a good, devout wife, who immerses herself in household chores of the likes of cooking, cleaning, washing and not one productive task beyond that! Perhaps, he had held high, his impression as a young lad, of his mother single-handedly organising the household. Mr Bingley abruptly returns to London, which devastates Jane, and Elizabeth becomes convinced that Mr Darcy and Bingley's sister Caroline have conspired to separate her sister from him.

After a few months, Elizabeth visits Charlotte and Mr Collins. Darcy visits them at the same time too. Thus, Elizabeth is no mood to accept when Darcy arrives and, quite unexpectedly, confesses love for her and begs her hand in marriage. His proposal is flattering, to say the least, but it is delivered in an inappropriate manner.

Elizabeth rebukes him, and a heated discussion follows; she confronts him about her sister and Bingley, with treating Mr Wickham disgracefully and with having conducted himself towards her in an arrogant manner. Mr Darcy, shocked, ultimately responds with a letter giving a good account of his actions. Elizabeth, who had previously condemned his behaviour, is forced to admit the truth of Mr Darcy's observations and begins to see that she has misjudged him. She, quite rightly, attributes her impressionistic opinion to his coldness towards herself at the beginning of their acquaintance.

That the misunderstanding had given way to a prospective match was a matter of joy, as both Darcy and Elizabeth had harboured soft corners for each other on their insides, knowingly or not.

~~~ 

Hence, being appreciative of Mr Bennet's, Bingley's and Darcy's inherent initiation towards a participative outlook in housework, and thoroughly condemning Mr Collin's attitude towards Charlotte is the key to household equality. That's because matrimony is not just about walking hand in hand with those ceremonial vows in tow. Matrimony is also about pacing shoulder to shoulder with familial responsibilities in tow. It's best to #ShareTheLoad in all aspects - be it psychologically, physically, emotionally or even economically! :) 

As a matter of fact, it is high time that we, as a society, shun the patriarchal dominance, gender bias, and the burden of social obligation to realise for the best, that:

There is no... 

Parity Not Prejudice Is Called For... 

Rhetoric Mindsets To Be Gone, Now!

Instilling Self Belief As Was Before...

Discovering Oneself Anew, And How! 

Expressing An Equilibrium, Sans Furore

in being... 

Perspectives Change, So Does Time...

Respecting #ShareTheLoad At Home

Etching Out Division Of Tasks, Prime

Juggle Work & Home Or Build Rome?

Undecided Which One's A Tough Climb

Dads, Moms - It's One Taxing Genome!

Idling Around's Definitely, The Crime...

Come On, Lend A Hand, Y Chromosome!

Effectively, Not A Role Model In Time...

Damned If Gen X Doesn't #ShareTheLoad

~~~ 

I am joining the Ariel #ShareTheLoad campaign at BlogAdda and blogging about the prejudice related to household chores being passed on to the next generation. 

P.S.: The plot summary of Austen's novel has been taken from Wikipedia and has been given a spin-off in line with the said campaign. 

#ShareTheLoad To Eliminate Gender Bias!

I am Reema. I was hardly a one-year-old when I first started understanding that all household chores are to be done by Mom. We are a joint family. My grandfather’s two brothers along with their families stayed in a three-storied building. Each of the brothers had one storey. Since my grandfather was the eldest among the three, our family occupied the top floor. The building was equipped with an exclusive lift. I can never forget the day when I wished ill against my father for the first time. It was in fact, a first time realization for me to learn about the mental blocks inhibiting him. Later I learnt that these mental blocks were not his fault. That is what had been taught to him right since his childhood days.

The incident was painful for me. It was evening time. I was crying as I was hungry. My father had reached home around half an hour back. He was working as a manager in an airline at that time. My mother was also just back from her work. She was working for an international bank. She had joined her office after a sabbatical of one and a half years. She had to be on this long leave because I had to land on the earth.

I was wailing at my loudest possible. My father was reading the newspaper in the adjacent living room. I could feel he was getting annoyed. I was wondering why he couldn't just stand up and boil milk for me. I knew Mom was just back from work and was freshening up. She would always take a shower after coming back from work. At times, she would be late at coming home from work. But, whatever be the time, an evening shower is a must for her. My father shouted ordering my mother to come fast to do whatever to console me. I was being even more restless. Finally, Mom came and boiled milk for me so that she could feed me something in order to comfort me.

Such incidents continued to occur for many years. Each task related to housework was Mom’s headache. Be it regarding the groceries, my school uniform, cleaning the house, or readying my father’s clothes for the next day at work. During one of those once-in-a-while healthy discussions, I was in my eighth grade and that evening I finally asked my father that if Mom could work and earn like him,  why he couldn't contribute to household chores like her. That one moment of truth brought a real transformation in him. He was dumbfounded and sought the answer to such a silently prevalent question. Today he not only contributes whatever little he can, in every chore like folding the ironed clothes, washing the groceries before cooking, preparing a simple breakfast as omelettes etc. at home but also sets an example for all the children at home, especially the boys and gentlemen in our joint family to ensure a balance in life and equal contribution to their respective mothers' or wives' efforts.

A few days back, when I saw an advert by Ariel, it brought back this episode's memory. I was reminded of this beautiful quotation by Benjamin Franklin:

Tell me and I forget,
Teach me and I remember,
Involve me and I learn.


As for me, I was involved at home by witnessing a loaded balance tilting towards and burdening my mother in my initial years, and I learned to condemn such gender bias towards the women of the family. I learned to appreciate the notion of #ShareTheLoad, which must even be propagated into the minds of the younger generation, in order to nip such prejudice in the bud, always.

~~~ 

I am joining the Ariel #ShareTheLoad campaign at BlogAdda and blogging about the prejudice related to household chores being passed on to the next generation.

Is It Too Tough To #ShareTheLoad?

There have been times. 

There have been times,
When I looked into his eyes,
To convey,
To seek his help,
Washing the dirty linen,
Is not as tough as he feels.

That Laundry is not only 

A Woman's Job. 

#IsLaundryOnlyAWomansJob? 

No! 

~~~

There have been times,
When I tried to tell him
If he has the rights to demand
That his clothes be properly washed,
And ironed in time,
Then he too, has certain
Responsibilities, Duties.

There have been times,
When I demonstrated to him
How easy it is to wash
With the Automatic,
At home...

Soaking In The Wetness...
Of Water. :)

Keep An Eye On The Timer...
And On How You've Set The Controls. :)

That's How We Twist And Twirl!
We'll Be Spotless In No Time! :)

~~~ 

And how simple it would be
For him to chip in on his part
And doing it sometimes when
I swing on those moods
Or if health swings on me...



There have been times,
When he has understood,
What I wanted to tell, convey
And, demonstrate to him
But he followed only one path
Of moodiness, ignorance and denial.

~~~

I knew he had the Time to
Assist me..
I knew he had the Capability to
Help me...
I knew he had the Heart to
Support me...
But never knew,
The reason behind,
Reluctance, Unwillingness,
And Occupation With Important Tasks.

~~~ 

Excuses, Avoidance, Dodging. 

Belittling 'Sharing Is Caring'. 

Coaxing, Persuasion, Convincing. 

Mister, You Ought To #ShareTheLoad! 

~~~

A magic transformed the mundane. 

A magic brimming of,
A Breeze of fresh air.
When he himself broke,
Broke free of the shell.
The shell he had been seeking,
Refuge in.
Leaving me incapacitated.
Searching the zeal, the volunteer.
Seeking him always.

Sometimes a fistful,
A scoop of Magical Powder.
Changes a mindset,
Transforms your patterns,
Rejuvenates your partner,
Turning into,
A much-awaited boon!

~~~ 

Shell, Refuge, Cocoon. 

Broken, Freedom, Wings. 

Game Changer In Frame. 

Ariel Matic! :D 

Complete+ has the power... 

Whatever be the stain...
Matic's here to nullify your pain! :)

Shine Like New, Indeed! :)
3 Step Super Powers.
Clean, Fast, Deep! 

~~~ 

The family that prays together stays together!

So, why not a couple to wash the dirty linen together?

Revolutionary?

Yes.

Do you dare?

Take The #WashBucketChallenge!

~~~

That's his first pose, with our Mr. Magic. 

That's how the dirty linen went inside. 

That's how we twisted and twirled. 

We shook and stir Him too... 

To being his Responsible self. 

That is Mr. Khanduja for you! 

~~~ 

Post the magical episode,
There are times...
When I ask him,
If he needs my help.
To do the Laundry.

And he just smiles,
Holding up in the air,
That packet of magic.
As a sign of Victory,
Over the unwillingness, reluctance,
And says - 'No'.

Still, I'm there.
To assist him.
For, We...
#ShareTheLoad.

That's not just my Automatic.
It's OUR Beloved Automatic. :)

The Feel Good Factor...
Of Contributing To Household Chores.
An Achievement. 

~~~

Now it is just us,
Our automatic,
And that packet,
Of magic.

Doing wonders,
All the day,
The whole week.
The entire month.

Long live the magic, Ariel Matic Complete+.
Long live the magician, Ariel India.
Long live the initiative to #ShareTheLoad.
For us as a family,
Sharing is indeed Caring.

~~~

'This post is a part of the #WashBucketChallenge activity at BlogAdda.com in association with Ariel India' 

Yes. 

It's not over yet. 

Mister and I nominate these five people to get any male member in their family, or as a male member of the family themselves, to pledge to #ShareTheLoad by taking the #WashBucketChallenge with Ariel India. 

Kiran Acharya (with her naughty brother, Charuhas) 

Rekha Dhyani (with her husband, Vikesh) 

Sakshi Nanda (with her husband, Aseem) 

Hrishikesh Bawa (to surprise his mother) 

Anmol Rawat (to surprise his sister, Akriti) 

This Ariel Disagrees...

 ~~~

My First Win At BlogAdda.

Overwhelming. :)

 ~~~



~~~

Ariel 'n' Ariel Productions, in association with Disney Motion Pictures...

Proudly present...

'This Ariel  Disagrees...'

~~~

A feature film, bound to break a prevalent stereotype in the mindset of the present generation's quintessential Indian.

The classic from Disneyland is now coming to a theater near you, with an Indian time-stamp!

How?

~~~

That's the Little Mermaid, for you, with her comrades, Flounder and Sebastian.

We've moved on a little...

To this...

~~~

His Majesty, King Eric...

Her Majesty, Queen Ariel...

And, the prettiest...

Princess Melody...

~~~

We begin our story, from this point itself.

Our Little Mermaid Ariel, has now taken up the human form and embraced parenthood.

Moreover, she and Eric had now taken up the responsibility of a Kingdom.

They were now Queen and King! :)

~~~

As is a ritual in His Majesty's rule, both the King and Queen step among the common - folk for a day, once a month.

But, their common - folk are not the ones under the King's rule.

Their common - folk are the  Queen's marine citizens.

~~~

For that one day, the royalty trade their limbs for fins, in order to dive into the serene waters of Atlantica, to pay a visit to King Triton, who is the Sea King, and Queen Ariel's father.

Eagerly waiting for their arrival, are Flounder and Sebastian, too.

Every month, it is a routine, in Atlantica too, when all the subjects gather to celebrate that one day with their dear Ariel.

On the other hand, Princess Melody spends her day, in royal play.

~~~

The present day, for a change, was bound to be different!

King Triton rose up to land to see his daughter and son-in-law this time!

He traded his two finned feet for human limbs, instead, for a day...

However, Melody is unknown to her grandfather, till date, to protect her from evil eye.

~~~

~~~

He had a reason, a very important reason, to facilitate his visit.

Incidentally, King Eric's people were inhabiting the land, bordering the waters of the Sea City of Atlantica.

Since these waters bordered His Majesty's kingdom, they were the people's lifeline.

And more often than not, a lifeline has to bear the brunt of life's ill-mannered ways.

~~~

For, King Triton had to intervene and inform the royalty of what crime was being unknowingly committed, by the womenfolk of their kingdom.

The waters of the Underwater Kingdom, of the Sea King, were being polluted by their activities. These women preferred to do their laundry at the sea-shore!

Hence, sending down all the dirt from their dirty laundry to the clean, serene waters of Atlantica!

Sebastian had been vocal enough in informing King Triton, who had further been irked to inform Eric and Ariel.

Flounder too, had seen his 'school-mates' navigate through falling pieces of dirt.

Of course, pieces, as it seemed huge to Flounder and all his mates, when heading out as a school of fish.

Other marine creatures too, had complained of other rock - like obstructions in their paths.

King Triton, thus urged the royalty to probe into the episode...

~~~

Queen Ariel took the lead and planned ahead, to proceed to their town, disguised as common-folk.

Both King Eric and Queen Ariel behaved as if they were a new fisher-folk couple in town, the next day.

And, fisher-folk settle near the seashore, don't they?

Ariel went around familiarizing herself with the women, and Eric interacted with the men.

To their surprise, the men were busy with their nets and navigation, while women were busy with the washing and cleaning of laundry!

~~~

When Ariel interacted with the ladies, they were all frustrated of their male counterparts.

They felt the scales were unbalanced...

With their side weighing heavy on them...

~~~

Clearly the men of King Eric's kingdom felt that...

Laundry Was A Woman's Job!

~~~

The women of the kingdom had to take on the responsibility of selling the fish from their nets, at the market each day and retiring to look after their house by the night.

Thus they were juggling the finances and the well-being of the house too, doubling their effort!

And doing laundry was an important household chore, besides cleaning and cooking.

The men on the other hand, went to the waters to fish, the entire day, thus retiring tired and taking the excuse of relaxation by the night.

Even on days when the waters were rough, the men didn't volunteer to extend any helping hand!

They either slept through the day, or idled around, wasting themselves.

When Eric tried to inquire with the men, they dismissed it by putting it all on to their wives' shoulders.

Washing and cleaning is a woman's job after all, ain't it?

They have to do it, not us!

~~~

More than two - thirds  of Indian women feel there exists inequality at home, between men and women.

76% of Indian men feel laundry is a woman's job.

85% of working Indian working women feel they have two jobs - one at work and another at home.

77% of Indian men depend on women for doing the laundry.

~~~

Queen Ariel felt disgusted by her subjects' mindsets.

She heralded change by bringing in a new dictation.

First, a new system of effective laundry-waste disposal was set to be implemented over the coming months.

Queen Ariel sent for her engineers to devise such a system to be laid out across the town, in order to save Atlantica's waters from pollution, too.

A greater hazard was the rotting ideology of their people though.

It must not be the division of labor according to femininity or masculinity, but division of labor by ability, both King and Queen opined.

Volunteering towards tasks of feminine domain do not make men less masculine, or even vice-versa.

Both Ariel and Eric had never known of the pitiable state of inequality in this aspect, in their kingdom.

~~~

To rule out the concept of labels, division and prerogatives, Ariel laid down a new concept.

A concept Eric too, was in favor of. 

She as queen, rolled out a dictum stating 'Occupational Swap'...

For a good two weeks, the women would go fishing, while the men would go to the market and care for the laundry and other chores.

This would acquaint both the sides of the scale to their equality and a balance which needed to be kept, and not an unbalanced work-load.

~~~

Apparently, their kingdom modeled a nation named India...

And, Ariel and Eric aimed to break a stereotype.

~~~

Queen Ariel,  King Eric and 'Ariel 'n' Ariel Productions'...

In collaboration with Disney India! :D

~~~

Because, she disagreed...

#IsLaundryOnlyAWomansJob?

This...

Abiding around for those seven days, for two weeks...

Reasoning with that varied ability, swapping around...

Imitating what the spouse does, in alternation, seeks...

Echoing to us that nuances of the other's work, bound...

Looking to both sides of a fair coin, which surely speaks...

~~~

I am writing for #IsLaundryOnlyAWomansJob Activity at BlogAdda.com in association with Ariel.