The League of Extra Ordinary Grey haired Women

The League of Extra Ordinary Grey Haired Women

I saw the most amazing tattoo today on my friend’s wall; for the uninitiated it is not a boundary wall, nor the wall of my friends house but our friendly neighborhood networking /adda’s! The graphic description of two women who were showing their delicate backsides standing on a beach with an amazing sunset at the back; and the old woman condescendingly saying to the other,” Don’t worry my dear, mine used to be an eagle too”. Time and gravity sort of distorted it.

Reality hits, reality bites! Imagine my surprise when my hair (who have their own leftist union) just refuses to take color. They just don’t want assimilate color, nope nada zilch is the scenario. As, my Basanti says,” Memsaab five rupees and kesh kala it is. “

The streak is getting longer and darker or is it whiter? Visions of grandeur and elegance of Nafisa Ali and Waheeda Rehman and likes sweep my mind in slow motion.  I can imagine myself walking down in a perfect chiffon sari with a pearl string and an elegant chignon with a perfect line of white hair blazing testament to my maturity and advancing years.

Alas, I wish my hair behaved in this picture perfect way and in the same fashion as society wants us to be. However the hair behave with a mind of there not being subjugated by the norms as life dictates. Society, wants women to be seen and not heard. She has these unwritten laws which one has to follow, look beautiful be razor stick thin, have the right curves, and the worst one be white. What does white mean, or the weird one written in the obnoxious matrimonial advertisements ‘ wheatish complexion’? Why are we obsessed with fair and lovely, the bane of our existence?

Coming back to my unruly, wild black peppered with grey hair is seeking an independence that is so denied to us.

Women are being killed on the altar of the saddest of all crimes of being of the wrong X chromosome, of not bringing in enough dowry, and the bizarrest of all a Karnataka Judge advocating that a woman should bear her husband’s cruelty as it is her duty to bear his displeasure.

Where do these paragons of virtue come from brandishing law and dictates to the better half?

Women need to be left alone, let them be what they want to be, if we want to be grey well grey it, in fact the fastest selling novel of all times also has a shade of grey.

We, in totality are a league to be reckoned with. The only way we can overcome the superficial and hypocritical double standards set by men who incidentally came from us and not the biblical rib is to be strong and bring out the reserves of confidence that is in us.

However, till this revolution occurs maybe when MNC’s stop fooling us with miracle hair color that will make you vibrant, and you will have luxurious fly by night hair it is another trip to the salon, or as in my case my trusty Basanti who will try once again to color and tame my hair with age old secrets of mehendi and you guessed it, oil!

 Ravneet Sangha