When a college principal in Mumbai said dressing like a man reduced a woman's desire to have children, Indian women on social media were quick to shut her down.
When women dress like men, they run the risk of getting Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, a gynaecological disease that occurs due to hormonal imbalance, and this in turn reduces their urge to reproduce.
This is patently untrue with no basis in any form of scientific study.
But that didn’t stop Swati Deshpande, the principal of Government Polytechnic College in Mumbai, from noting exactly that while mulling a change in the uniform worn by the female students of the college (which is currently a pair of trousers and a shirt), according to a report in the Times of India.
And as with most bizarre statements that end up making the news, it wasn’t long before the internet came together; but this time it was not to troll, but rather shut down the misogyny inherent in such a thought process. Soon, the hashtag#DressLikeAnIndianWoman started trending on Twitter for hours.
Women especially showed up in droves to post pictures of themselves in different kinds of everyday attire, collectively standing up to moral policing and harmful and unfounded notions of what they should be.
I will hop hop hop. I don’t care what you think. Another shade of #DressLikeAnIndianWoman pic.twitter.com/U7vXPjXfyF
— Aarti Nair (@rtnair91) February 8, 2017
#DressLikeAnIndianWoman break into a dance ?? when you feel like. It’s your life. You are free. pic.twitter.com/OAgKV5fNVn
— Pratima Chaudhuri (@PratimaC) February 8, 2017
I will wear whatever m comfortable in.
Who is gonna stop me? You ?
TRY ME!#DressLikeAnIndianWoman pic.twitter.com/I4rZ4IqmiD— freebird (@geet0212) February 7, 2017
Dressing like this doesn’t make me less of a woman ! #DressLikeAnIndianWoman pic.twitter.com/kLjcnBZQo1
— Nathasha-AR-Kumar (@nathasha_ar) February 7, 2017
Clearly pants haven’t diminished my reproductive urge! Wear what you like!
#DressLikeAnIndianWoman @MasalaBai pic.twitter.com/AKIaOMLHt8— Prema Sagar (@SagarPrema) February 7, 2017
Note to self : Start to #DressLikeAnIndianWoman maybe ?
Meanwhile, #elfie .? pic.twitter.com/mQl7kdsm17— Gul Panag (@GulPanag) February 7, 2017
#DressLikeAnIndianWoman that’s moi pic.twitter.com/k4fu7Bf5pa
— Subarna Chakravorty (@subarnac) February 7, 2017
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While the principal of the college has yet to respond to the backlash, women in India continue proving that they will keep fighting for their rights with their sense of humour intact.
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