Besides being an award-winning actress in Indian and Hollywood, Shabana Azmi has also been a vocal social activist, especially championing for women's rights. Recently, after her 74th birthday in Mumbai, the veteran actress spoke about we can start treating victims and survivors in a better way in India. Here's what she had to say.
Why are women in our country not safe?
But are they safe in any part of the world? I realized Singapore is the only country in the world where gender isn’t an issue when it comes to personal safety. At midnight, I could walk fearlessly on the streets, take a cab and go out at any time of the night.
Shouldn’t it be the same everywhere?
In the 1970s, the claim that women could ‘take back the night’ came from this whole idea that women shouldn’t be restricted in their mobility. Sadly, the fact is women are unsafe in every city, be it New York, London, Mumbai, Delhi or Kolkata.
Are you hopeful that this would happen?
This feeling should be a given in the 21st century for women in every city and not something we strive for.
ALSO READ: Shabana Azmi Says Society Makes Women Feel 'Incomplete' If They Can't Bear Children: For A Man That's Not…
Why are our women attacked in big cities?
In a patriarchal society like ours, violence against women has the tacit approval of society. Certainty and not severity of punishment could act as a detriment . What the severity of punishment would probably do is to make the man rape and kill the woman. If there’s a death sentence for rape, the rapist would be encouraged to rape AND kill a woman.
You seem to have studied the issue closely.
I studied the whole issue of rape very seriously when I was in parliament. What happens is, after the actual rape, the woman goes through another verbal rape in court. What the prosecution tries to do is put the blame on the victim, ‘You were wearing these clothes… standing in a certain place… behaving in a certain way.' Standard accusations and responses of a patriarchal society. Half the women won’t even complain about being raped. First they’ll be raped, then interrogated in the police station, then in court, and the press.
How do you make a rape victim feel protected?
It’s extremely important to have on-camera trial, and also to sensitize the police. When a woman is traumatized the cops need to handle her emotions with more care. We also need to look into basic requirements of security on the streets. The streets need to be lit better, the cops need to patrol more rigorously after midnight.