The tables seem to be turning with the hands of the clock. Or so some would have us believe. As a bunch of beleaguered mothers-in-law — those feisty creatures who are supposed to strike the fear of God into nervous, newly-wed lassies — join hands to launch India’s (and the world’s) first All India Mothers-in-law Protection Forum (AIMPF) in Bangalore, one can’t help but wonder if Lalita Pawar would have survived the 21st century.
Well, the idea behind this coming together of misunderstood Mummyjis is the belief that they have been given a rotten deal by society, popular culture and, worse, by a legal system that turns a blind eye to their plight, ever-ready to believe the real villain of the domestic peace: the ‘downtrodden’ daughter-in-law. Their contention is that saas-bahu serials have done more than their bit to promote the myth of the monstrous mother-in-law as a scheming, eyebrow-wiggling harridan who refuses to release the son from her petticoat strings into the sea of marital bliss. Fed up with always being in the firing line for the fireworks in the son’s marriage, these mums are being given a leg up by another distressed band of brothers: the Save India Family Foundation, a non-governmental agency for harassed husbands.
In fact, here’s some interesting information the ladies are citing that seems to belie the beastly tales of bahu-bashing: the latest report of the National Family Health Survey shows that 13.7 per cent women suffer violence at the hands of their moms, compared to 1.7 per cent tormented by their moms-in-law. Now, this might be less believable than other startling revelations like how men actually love to gossip more than women; or that women are hardwired to dislike their partner’s mother; but you better believe that the saucy saas is back, and she’s baying for the blood of the wily woman who seems to have stolen her villainous thunder.
{{/usCountry}}In fact, here’s some interesting information the ladies are citing that seems to belie the beastly tales of bahu-bashing: the latest report of the National Family Health Survey shows that 13.7 per cent women suffer violence at the hands of their moms, compared to 1.7 per cent tormented by their moms-in-law. Now, this might be less believable than other startling revelations like how men actually love to gossip more than women; or that women are hardwired to dislike their partner’s mother; but you better believe that the saucy saas is back, and she’s baying for the blood of the wily woman who seems to have stolen her villainous thunder.
{{/usCountry}}