Carrying an ocean of secrets

One of their most cherished possessions, a purse can reveal a lot about a woman, finds Jaydeep Ghosh.

Keys, tissues, vaseline, sunglasses, batteries, Paracetamol, sewing kit, rescue remedy.. Ever wondered why women feels incomplete without a handbag stuffed with items 'just in case', but men can cope with a pocket or two.

HT Image

From tiny rucksacks through sequinned glamour bags to big mummy handbags, it's very rare to see a woman without one. Men, on the other hand, seem to get away with carrying very little clutter on them.

What's inside?

We asked around some ladies what they carry round with them on a daily basis.

Here is what fashion designer Puja Nayyar with a penchant for handbags carries in them - "mobile phone, credit card folder, a bestseller, a little sketch pad and some 'can't do without' things' for women."

Model Sucharita Sharma says, "I carry my cellphone, wet tissues to clean hands, dry pocket tissues, mini diary with list of 'things-to-do', pen, mini perfume and mini handereme, house keys, pictures of family and friend, chapstick, lipstick and oh yeah, mints."

"That's a lot actually" You bet!

Do they need it all?
These women claim to use everything, but we really doubt that - how often do you actually need sunglasses and an umbrella on the same day?

Are women really frequented by emergency situations?

Do they really need to carry around Handyplast and Paracetamol every single day, just in case they get a bad cut or a bad head?

We think if more women leave their bags at home, even just occasionally they'll be less stressed about their bag being left behind or snatched.

We suggested and Sucharita took up the challenge.

Here what she says, "I popped to the cafe for lunch from work the other day and left my bag locked in my desk although I felt a bit lost at first, it was nice not to have to worry about where it was if I got deep into conversation, knowing that my wallet and keys were in my pocket!"