Reena Daruwalla

A former lawyer, now freelance writer, fauji wife, mother, singer, knitter and lover of my own cooking, I have altogether too many opinions and too few convictions. The more I learn the more I am confronted by the enormity of learning I must yet acquire. I joyfully embrace being a jack of a few trades and master of absolutely none.

Voice of Reena Daruwalla

Women Can Have Many Reasons Not To Have Kids, And Being Childfree Is OK!

Women have enough on their plate without making them feel inadequate or guilty or upset about choosing not to be a mother or not being able to have a child.

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Abhimaan
50 Years Of Abhimaan: A Movie Before Its Time And Relevant Even Today

Abhimaan is a film about gender norms and expectations, male insecurities, female success and social attitudes towards all these.

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Bridgerton 3
Bridgerton 3 Is Out – Why Is It A Guilty Pleasure For So Many Women?!

Though Bridgerton 3 is very much a 21st century production with the strong-willed, feisty women who speak their mind, there is much that is regressive.

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Salman’s Obnoxious Actions And Abhishek’s Clueless Patronising… Grow Up, Boys!

Are these men from Bollywood truly clueless about their internalised misogyny or do they think they can get away with such statements and behaviour?

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PT Usha Who’s Really ‘Tarnishing India’s Image’? Powerful Sexual Abusers Or Those Protesting Abuse?!

There are any number of ‘reasons’ proffered for women being consistently disbelieved, discredited and dismissed; with the accused permitted to go scot free or at least getting the benefit of the doubt.

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Why Indian Women Can Still See Themselves In Jubilee’s Women From The 1950s!

One has to compromise to make a film, either with the body or with the conscience, Niloufer memorably says at one point. It is a statement of fact, not a moral judgement.

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Is Salman Khan Seriously Claiming To Be The Victim In His Past Relationships?!

It is at the promo of an upcoming Salman Khan film that we hear some truly tasteless, unfunny ‘jokes’. The film is Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan and the show is that old suspect, The Kapil Sharma Show. The so-called ‘jokes’ are the usual ghisa-pita, trite ones about the ‘conniving’, ‘man-eating’ woman getting into […]

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Any Time A Woman Is Called A Superwoman, There Are Men Around Taking It Easy!

Gender expectations, objectification, fat shaming: in an interview about her new film 'Mrs. Undercover', Radhika Apte says it like it is.

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Stranger Things Enola Holmes Star Trending As “She Is 19 And Engaged” For Very Indian Reasons

What Millie Bobby Brown did is unheard of in India. Indian parents would have a heart attack at such presumption from their kids!

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Zeenat Aman Shows Us How To Support A Woman Considered A Rival At Work

Zeenat Aman’s IG post on Parveen Babi’s birthday highlights how women supporting each other is so vital for us all – because we are all fighting the patriarchy – not each other.

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Kalakshetra & Cricket Coaching Sexual Harassment Cases – An Abuse Of Guru-Shishya Relationships?

It is not hard for perpetrators in a position of power to silence their victims because of their position of power. Kudos to the young women who have spoken up.

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Celina Jaitly Trolled For Trans Rights Tweet: Do You Want To Hear They’re Better Than ‘Real Women’?

Trans people continue to be regarded with suspicion or as ‘abnormal’ and continue to be kept out of the mainstream of society, often shunned by their own families and find it difficult or even impossible to get an education and a job.

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Man Offended By ‘Slur On Madhuri’ Calls Out Netflix: Merely Virtue Signalling For Attention?

This is content that has been available for 14 years, in multiple languages in up to 140 countries. It is unlikely that anything will come of this ‘notice’.

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Uorfi Javed
Can We Call Uorfi Javed A Feminist?

Uorfi Javed has been making waves through social media, and is often the target of trolls. So who and what exactly is this intriguing young woman?

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Shweta Bachchan Nanda Is Tougher On Daughter Than Son ‘Coz “The World Is Tougher On Women”!

As women we can choose to perpetuate the oppressive strictures that society placed on us or we can try to break the cycle. What do you do?

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Ranbir Gives Himself A Good Husband/Dad Certificate After His Gaffes – And Doing The Bare Minimum?!

In what felt like an image whitewashing exercise for Ranbir by his cousin Kareena, camoflaged as a promo for his new film, he speaks of how good a husband and dad he is.

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Lakme Fashion Week: Fashion As Protest, A Voice For The Marginalised

The fashion industry has lent itself wonderfully for marginalised identities to express themselves; maybe why so many in this industry are openly queer - both trans and gay?

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Want To Know What Taking Privilege Supremely For Granted Looks Like?

Being born into privilege is not crime; it is not even something that one has control over. What is unfortunate is the lack of self-awareness in those with privilege.

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Did You Really Say That About Your Wife And Daughter, Ranbir?!

Doing this once may be a mistake, twice and people could still give him the benefit of the doubt, but this is a habit now. For someone who positions himself as modern and reasonably evolved, this is just… particularly clueless.

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Grow Up Bollywood! A Fun Holi Means Consent, Not Your Usual Hooliganism!

The comment bura na mano Holi hai has become slogan used to excuse the worst kind of behaviour: invading personal space, touching, defacing and groping the most inappropriate places because oops! the hand slipped.

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All 4 Accused Acquitted Of Gangrape In Hathras Case – Where Is the Outrage?

Only 1 of 4 in the Hathras case have been held guilty under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) by a UP court. All four are held not guilty of gang rape.

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Zeenat Aman
Epitome Of Grace And Gorgeous At 71, Aap Jaisa Koi Nahi, Zeenat Aman!

Zeenat Aman has been dropping truth bombs and charming us on IG, even though she's been here for just 2 weeks, and we can't have enough!

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Swara Bhaskar Is An Inconvenient Woman Who Gets Hate From All Sides For Just ONE Reason

Swara Bhaskar is not the 'good woman' that a patriarchy loves. This ‘disobedient’ woman doesn’t fit into any convenient moulds, and as such is infuriating in the extreme.

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ways to celebrate Valentines
Naming A Cockroach After Your Ex & Other Interesting Ways To Celebrate Valentines Day!

Why should Valentine's Day only be about the happy couples? Here are some quirky ways to celebrate Valentines Day for single people.

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sid kiara wedding
For Some, Kiara Is Already ‘Mrs Malhotra Waiting At Home For Her Man’! Really?!

Even as the #SidKiaraWedding is happening, some people have already relegated her to "Mrs Malhotra waiting at home for her man"! Hold your expectations!

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Why Do So Many Women Love SRK The Actor And The Man So Unabashedly?

We typically see a great deal of respect from the man for the women IRL. The way he champions women and their causes - this is SRK using his power for good.

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Hansika Motwani
Hansika Motwani Pre-Sold Her Wedding Video Rights To Hotstar – Should We Judge Her?

Is Hansika Motwani doing anything really bizarre? It is common practice for celebrities to sell exclusive rights to their wedding, new baby etc. to publications.

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‘Godman’ Asaram Gets Life Sentence For Rape But Women Still Support Him. Why?

People do not want to believe that the person who has given them such a sense of comfort and belonging could be a criminal – so they don’t.

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‘I Was His Last Priority’ Says Jaya In A Video Clip That Resurfaced On Social Media

When Jaya Bachchan speaks her mind in public she is often accused of being brusque and even abrasive. Can we think of her prodigious talent and all the bitter pills she has had to swallow over the years?

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SRK’s Pathaan Is Out And Here’s What Audiences Are Saying About It

SRK is an ex-army undercover agent, Padukone plays a Pak ISI agent, and Abraham is an ex-RAW rogue agent. They are seen to hop across continents looking great as they go about their spying or whatever it is that they do.

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Kangana
Kangana Is Back On Twitter: Love Her Or Hate Her, You Can’t Ignore Her!

Kangana Ranaut is a force to reckon with, no matter what you feel about her; known for taking on the bigwigs of the industry for nepotism.

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Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar
The Many Reasons To (NOT) Look Forward To The New Ranbir And Shraddha Starrer

The trailer of Luv Ranjan's Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar starring Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor was released a couple of days ago.

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Women Can Now Be Commanding Officers In Indian Military, But I’m Not Cheering Yet!

A woman officer still walks the tight rope between professional duties and gendered expectations. She may be an army/ air force/ navy officer, but at home she is still expected to look after the home, oversee the kids’ requirements and the demands of in-laws, etc.

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Are Indian Women Angrier Now Than 10 Yrs Ago Or Are People Finally Paying Attention?

A new Gallup poll reveals that up to 40% of Indian women are angry compared to 27% of men. This is a change from 29% angry women and 28% angry men 10 years ago, in 2012.

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Why Are We So Fascinated By Tragic Lives Of Beautiful Women?

Some time ago, Imtiaz Ali and Hansal Mehta respectively spoke of biopics of Madhubala and Meena Kumari. But do these biopics do justice to these women?

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Our Teens Need Better Sex Ed, Not A Ban On Buying Contraceptives!

Curiosity about sex and sexuality is natural and inevitable in teenagers, and banning sale of contraceptives will only make our kids secretive instead of safe.

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Shamita Shetty’s New Film Shows How ‘Sanskaari’ Housing Societies Harass Single Women

Any single Indian woman who has tried to rent a home has probably encountered this: brokers with conditions, RWAs laying down draconian rules, long lists of dos and don’ts. Women choosing to live life on their own terms just seems to rattle a lot of people.

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Why Are So Many Indian Men Outraged About Criminalising Marital Rape?

That a man somehow has a right to the body of a woman whenever he wants just because he is the 'husband' is a heinous idea that should have been discarded long ago!

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