Single Motherhood and the Indian Society

A young woman settles down in a new place with just a child to call family and the rumor mills immediately start churning out the spiciest gossips! Ironically, the adage goes, “God can’t be everywhere and that’s why mothers were made”. So, if a woman wants to start a family not by getting married but by adoption of a needy child, why does the society find it so hard to digest that the single mother is given a tough time throughout her life because of this noble gesture? Indian youth needs freedom. If this freedom comes outside of the matrimonial shackles and in the arms of an innocent child, why does the society judge? On this Mother’s Day, here is what must be given a serious thought.

In the strictly male-dominated and traditional society in India, the clan becomes the worst foes when it comes to a girl child, the supposed “honor” of their household, taking a firm stand and deciding the course of her life all by herself. The discouragement turns into rejection and the single mother is more than often forced to leave the house. Once her life begins afresh in a new place, the myriad venomous questions raise their ugly heads and everyone from the neighborhood aunties to the newspaper boy take their turn at assaulting the single mother’s privacy. Not only is the lady victimized in the society, the child of a single mother is a also ridiculed, starting with the school admission forms which do not accept the blank opposite the column ‘Father’s Name’. Class-based discrimination is evident in this matter too. If a celebrity opts for single motherhood the society is all praise for the “kindness and courage” but when it is a common girl, the same society calls her the perfect example of who-not-to-be!

The reasons why a woman opts for single motherhood are numerous. It’s a matter of choice, a question of personal opinion and thinking. Unfortunately, marriage in the Indian society is highly institutionalized and strictly traditional, hence, making it more of a lifetime of drill practice rather than a blissful lifetime of togetherness. The number of suicide cases of brides and housewives due to all sorts of marital pressures are constantly on the rise. Dowry practice is one of the biggest factors why an independent, well-educated young woman today opts for a happy family of two. Another major factor is the freedom that comes with single motherhood. One parent lays down all the “rules in the house” and the brutally sexist concept of “the man of the house” comes to an end. As an outcome, there is no increment in the Indian population and a homeless orphan gets a loving mother and a happy and secured life.

The concept of single motherhood calls for help from the government in terms of generating awareness and eradicating the stigma attached to it. Every woman must be made aware of the choice she has and the rights she enjoys. The society needs to grow up! It’s not hard to understand that more than just a personal choice; single motherhood can actually be a good social practice, in terms of orphan adoptions. The need of the hour is equality. Every citizen of this country enjoys the constitutional ‘Right against discrimination’. A single mother needs social acceptance more than a married couple. It’s high time the families dissociate the notion of false honor with their daughters and start treating them like normal individuals with a personal life filled with personal choices. Single Motherhood is all about exercising one’s beliefs and the youth of the country must unite in creating an environment where it is happily and easily possible.

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1 COMMENT

  1. Motherhood is one of he bliss for any lady! However, due to certain reasons, single motherhood is a trend that has been inherited by India from the west. But it is saddening to see that most of the Indian societies refuse to accept this trend. Why? Just because a lady can not raise a kid alone? or is it that the kids may not be as decent otherwise. It is high team we take such mentality off the world!

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