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Do you agree – Women should be seen and not heard?

Detective Mania ! Nipped in the bud

The recent slingshots to nail the controversy about Bill Cosby and his romps with women seems to be dated almost two decades ago when women preferred to bury the shame under the carpet. I am neither a fan of this stand-up comedian nor a die-hard feminist but  when  humour reaches sublimation and the best outlet for some men is to try a hand at molestation. Since women who like ---men with a good sense of humour— is rare, soon the devil enters the man’s head and he leaps at his most vulnerable target. This controversy is getting sloppy as B.C.’s shows are being cancelled in the US. Such a controversy happened in India when the boss of a leading publishing house was caught on CCTV, so-called misbehaving with a colleague, which backfired on him and the man landed behind bars. Today he is out of jail but the case is not yet solved.
How do people view such characters? Yes, through tinted glasses, but the tint gets darker if you are closer (in proximity) to the wrong doer. Now you know why we need detectives, to keep an eye on misbehaving men who drool over the ‘w’ of the word Woman. In India women are still considered as playthings before and after marriage. Our culture has a lot to contribute and shatter the female psyche.So women should only be seen and not heard--- as good as domestic animals? Times are changing but the pace is dodgy if we  compared ( the rural and urban statistics) from hearsay or stories narrated by reliable friends.Do our men learn to be civilized from past mistakes, go soul searching or bear punitive actions?


Transvestite on roll call

In my opinion, eunuchs are best suited for the ‘detective’job as they have that impartial touch to the profession of unearthing facts quite undesired. Unless they have this urge to grab quick money as it is an ingratiating job. It is impossible to catch hold of a eunuch who  can build a firewall to shoo away nosy characters and conduct the investigation discreetly.Then you can get one who will just target that cash inflow. Now come on he/she is human , even Sherlock Holmes would not offer a guarantee to a cash-crazy detective.


The female boss prefers a female assistant as a detective so there I am, who has weathered the sun’s piercing rays, insults uttered  by onlookers or unabashed neighbours with clenched fists and hot snorts, ready to pounce during my visits.My sole purpose is not to pull the carpet from under the feet of
my client(femme fatale) but her perpetrator.The first is Rasika who swears till today that day when she married that bank officer……


The banker who could never make her smile


Rasika married a bank officer with the usual pomp & gaiety. The only fact she and her relatives brushed aside was that her husband lived in a small house (Mumbai after all) that was run by his overbearing (unemployed) siblings. Lo! tragedy struck Rasika like lightning with her twin role as wife and cook. The harrowing experience for a city born bride was pointless to argue and defend. The daily bouts of verbal arguments led to avoidable spats, slaps and tears. The next stage is mental torture that compelled her to rush toa police station. Now the fight turned public coupled with glares and jeers. And here ‘I’ enter the arena as witness-cum- detective. Rasika was stalked by ‘me’ thereafter to check out on her vulnerability to build up a police case.  On reaching her home,to my surprise I noticed there seemed to be a different Rasika within those four walls. She behaved more like a tyrant than a comely wife. But I had to report to my boss (Fatima) and construct a real case. The tables had turned ,to top it all I discovered that the client for Fatima was Rasika’s sister-in-law. Where am I? Do not call me a two-timer but the situation demanded it.Here I was fighting for Rasika and Fatima was against her.

What a plight to be between the devil and the deep sea and I sincerely tried to ease out of this dilemma. As fate would have it we had to re-locate to another house so the geographical distance helped me relinquish my duties from this complicated assignment. When last heard about Rasika, she had gone through a tough divorce proceeding and is in another city down south.




Case 2 less complicated


Suneeti looked like any other happily married woman, unexpectedly met me in the neighborhood, She was soft spoken which made me cringe….why ? Soft spoken persons in our country usually have a story to tell. She found my ears convenient, so we decided to meet at my place. On the pretext of chiselling her spoken skills in English she volunteered to take a few classes in Conversational English. My ears were more pricked…she was a mother to two cute children and whenever her son was discussed she would exclaim –Oh he is like his father-What did that mean. Slowly and steadily I started peeling the Orange, oh I am on the threshold of a sour story--Marriage turned sour. She referred to her husband now turned lover and needed some investigation…Oooh I sprung to the idea after all I am an unemployed detective now. Must  inform my ex-boss Fatima. She let me do the grovelling first. Facts came to light, that man (husband) on the pretext of going on business trips was away on all weekends with his cute friend. Obviously this mistress kept him busy. I did manage to spill the beans to Suneeti  who was keen on discussing this matter with her husband’s relatives. Talks  over. The man admitted to indulgences that linked to his business as well. So to atone for his past sins, which may tread into the future, he took the family on a holiday. There appeared a glint of joy in Suneeti’s eyes. They must have spent a month or so in utter bliss when suddenly the husband vanished for a few days after the vacation. The so-called mistress had fled with another man and Suneeti’s husband was left high and dry. This was a bitter lesson he had learnt after his escapade. But Suneeti welcomed him again in the hope that he would never be a wayward husband again. Not all escapades end up like this. But my job of investigation ended here.


This piece should be an eye-opener for all those men who believe in the paradigm that women should only be seen and not heard. I have no advice for any young woman except that Marry only if you need a companion. Marriage cannot be a two act play---Marry then Divorce. Not worth it.

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