Author: Swati Tamhankar Mohandas
India is full of diversity and culture and many festivals are associated and celebrated throughout the year. All the festivals are celebrated with great fervour and enthusiasm all over our country. We all eagerly look forward to the shopping, the decorations, the indulgence, the lip-smacking delicacies which emanate from almost every household and try to understand and follow the various rituals and traditions. Not to forget the get-togethers with family and friends, the exchanging of gifts, which only add up to the fun and frolic of any festival.
Gone are the days when the system of Joint family was prevalent wherein all the womenfolk used to assist one another in the chores and rejoice in the celebrations. Now, it is nuclear all the way especially in cities.
Behind all the festival celebrations, it is the ever-smiling, multi-tasking lady of the house who is not only preparing the mouth-watering delicacies but also slogging in cleaning up the house days before the festivities begin or before the guests arrive.
It truly makes me ponder – Is she thoroughly enjoying this celebration of festivals? Is her mind truly relaxed to partake in the joyous laughter which fills the air during such occasions?
I seriously doubt.
As amidst all the laughter and cheers, she is constantly wondering about the dishes to clean and tidying the house when the guests leave or when the day is over.
For her family members, they are doing the ‘usual‘ relaxing and enjoying every bit of their ‘break‘ as they have ‘chutti‘ from their school/college or maybe their workplace, so either they are busy catching up with friends at home or simply lazing on the sofa binge-watching Netflix.
But for the lady it is additional workload as in most households the coveted maid/house-help also takes “chutti” to enjoy the festival with her family which is totally acceptable. So, the onus of the whole housework falls on the lady who not only has to wake up early, dress up in her finery, begin with the rituals associated with the particular festival, cook a relishing 5-course meal with delicacies and so on. The lady does all this with a smile on her face but inside she is exhausted. She is longing for a break from the increased workload and multitasking as she is mentally and physically fatigued.
To Sum it up, my Point of View is :
Keep in mind that each member of the family deserves to enjoy the festival with enthusiasm. Pitch in with the housework. Share the workload. Don’t simply exempt yourself from contributing to the chores on the pretext of ‘relaxing’. After all, the lady is the real ‘Lakshmi’, the real Queen of the house. Treat her right.