My dear society, do you know that I heard the word ‘society’ for the first time when I was in 11th standard when one of the teachers who loved me a lot taught us one day the valuable words ofMaclver and Page, “Society is the web of Relationships.’ During that time I haven’t had the lens to think on it critically but when today I go through the same definition I realize that if society is the web of relations, then the relations with whom? And I arrived at the answer that society is web of the relation and the interconnected relationswith all living beings,animals as well as human beings. But today I see people don’t live with people in a healthy manner let alone animals. It may be that they are showing care about animals but they don’t care about people.We people are not honest and truthful with our relations. In the relationships with our mother,father, sister, brother, teacher, friend or stranger, we are either honest with it or we play with them diplomatically.

Before that I heard about the word, ‘society’, I used to confuse it with ‘people’. My father used to talk about it, they said, what people say, what people think,etc.Actually, what he was trying to tell me indirectly was about people who arein society or the society where people lived. If society is the web of humans’ interrelations with each other then, their relation with each other should be ideal, loving and caring. At that time I felt how beautiful and kind the society is but today when I grew up, I developed a dilemma about it. At this very young age and the very beginning of life, I felt like the society is so ridiculous. May be its because at only 22 years of age, I have undergone much and tried to overcome it. The society where I was born at that time, it wanted to kill me in my mother’s womb because I was a girl child. The society lovesa boy child more than a girl child. Because of this partial society and its system of patriarchy, people’s minds are like that. Till this day, we are denied gender equality and are living under a masculine attitude and manner.

When I grew up this society tells me till now not to speak more, not to smile loudly because you are a girl. Iwas always told that the society has different values and norms for girls and boys. The society discriminates between girls and boys from their childhood when it tells us not to play with boys and now it tells me men are only like this. Who made the society like this?The men or women or both of them shapethe society. Who is the responsible to construct society like this? We make the society or society makes us? If we made society so why did we make it like this? Why the absence of humanity and mankind and no freedom?I have seen in the street if two people love each other publicly, people beat them, shame them but on the same street, if people fight each other, no one goes and stops it. They think it is their personal affairs but when they love each other, it becomes public affairs. We have the right to express our emotions but if we express it, allegations are thrown against us. We have right to think out of the box or we ever think to break the glass ceiling. Do we ever think why caste is so rigid and whether we really need the long history attached to it, or do we have any profit out of patriarchy?

However, the society where I live is theIndian society and is the bitter truth of this. For me this society and his system like patriarchy is very close to link to class, to caste,and to heteronormativity, as a Indian Dalit middle class women where we aredivided in the name of caste,class and gender. It is very basic system which is present. Others many more like religion, language, culture, education,disability,etc.are present and may be other women and men are also suffering through it. Many people are victims of this various intersections which are not good enough.For it, now the big term is intersectionality. The number of intersections in our society makes our mind exclusive and we follow the socio-cultural norms of society. For some it is good and the same is bad for someone else. People treat everyone differently. Why they are not able to equally treat all of them? Why marriage is mandatory? Marriage is everyone’s personal choice. Who makes the rule after marriage only people live together, why not before? It is like they are taking permission or grant of society (who is this society this people who never cooperate them.is they fear of society if they beat us, boycott us) tofulfil their sexual desire or they both are not enough trust to each other so they restrict their self on the name of marriage. It is the same with having children that we really need only biological child.

Why we can’t adopt make his/her life happy. Why a woman need one man always exist her life on the name of father, brother or a husband? Why she is not capable to live single? And who makesthe culture? Or does culture make society or society make culture? As per my lens,cultures don’t make human beings,human being make cultures. Culture need to change with time and today our culture, our religious practices should change according to Indian constitution, which says all human beings are equal whatever their caste, class, sex or religion. We live for society orsociety lives for us?Today in our society there is so much hatred, jealousy, ignorance, inequality, exclusion, injustice, slavery,etc.and many more negative bunch of dialogue has been enhanced. Which are all against the constitution? Which tells us justice,liberty,equality and fraternity but we against the constitution, may not follow it and we accept the society which taught us violence and discrimination. Can we live without society? I don’t feel so. If there were no socirty, where do we communicate, where we make our relations and make it sustain.

We need a societywho never harmed us physically and emotionally too. Do you feel weneed to change society? Do you as readers feel we can change it? If yes, then firstly we need to carefully listen to our inner voices. If then we find negative traits we need to change our minds firstly then others and one day we will meet a prosperous,equal, free society.That day we will be born again with emancipated minds and that will be a perfect thing for Humanity. I recall here Ambedkar as he said, ours is a battle not for wealth or for power. It is a battle for freedom. It is a battle for the reclamation of human personality.

I put here the composed verse of mine, which is requesting society for its betterment.

Dear society, you are the bunch of rules and norms.. I mould myself for you but yet you judge me.. Dear society, why you divided us on the name and fame of degraded systems..We need equality and sovereign in our spaces.. Dear society, why you make us betray us and why you reach out us to a point of committing suicide? How we enjoy this society where too much pain, misery and various burden and restrictions in all domain.We don’t able to tolerate anymore.

Dear society, why I have fear of you, you are evil or what I want to live fearless and without danger. Dear society, why you put yourself and us in box, just free us and break the glass ceiling..

I want you convert rigid society to become chainless and ideal society.. Dear society, please, try to understand that I am here to call all change in a positive way and save us all towards fresh, free days…

Shivani TISS,Mumbai.