A pathbreaking move: A Malayalam fortnightly magazine features a model breastfeeding!
| Updated: Mar 1, 2018, 13:41 IST
Breaking barriers, especially in society and changing the way people think, is no easy task. And more so, if you intend to do it, flak is something you should see coming. Well, we bet this Malayalam magazine is all prepared for it and we love that despite knowing what may come their way, they've decided to go ahead with this pathbreaking move.
A Malayalam fortnightly magazine recently featured a model breastfeeding a child on the cover. Breastfeeding in public spaces is seen as a 'taboo', much, like talking about menstruation is and pre-marital sex for women. In fact, breastfeeding is also unnecessarily sexualised by some people! The cover of this magazine went viral on social media and created quite the stir too. And while we bet some did not like the idea, many have considered this a rather pathbreaking move in the movement for women’s rights in the country. “It is a problem to interpret this sexually. Isn’t it a beautiful thing, friends? Why do you think it is wrong? Which god will be angry if you feed your child," said the model, Gilu Joseph to a leading Malayalam daily. “I am extremely proud of my body and only I exercise rights over it. I only do things that I think is right for me, which is why I had no qualms in taking up this project,” she added.
While her family wasn't supportive of Joseph’s choice to appear on the cover in this manner, she went ahead with it anyway because though she respects and understands their qualms, “nothing can deter me from doing what I feel is right”. “So many times, new mothers are helpless when their children cry of hunger, simply because they are unable to feed in public. This has to change. Breastfeeding is a matter of pride, and women have to be able to feed their children freely and openly. You don’t need feeding rooms to feed your children. So we figured that having a discussion around this would be the most relevant thing to do this Women’s Day,” said Moncy Joseph, editor-in-chief of the magazine. “Breasts are perceived in a sexual manner, even when a mother feeds her child. Here it is not just men, but even women who stare if a mother feeds her baby in public,” she added.
On the cover, Joseph can be seen wearing a thick line of vermillion on her forehead suggesting that she is any ordinary Indian woman with the right to breastfeed! Splashed across the cover, it says, “Mothers tell Kerala, please don’t stare, we need to breastfeed." And we agree!
A Malayalam fortnightly magazine recently featured a model breastfeeding a child on the cover. Breastfeeding in public spaces is seen as a 'taboo', much, like talking about menstruation is and pre-marital sex for women. In fact, breastfeeding is also unnecessarily sexualised by some people! The cover of this magazine went viral on social media and created quite the stir too. And while we bet some did not like the idea, many have considered this a rather pathbreaking move in the movement for women’s rights in the country. “It is a problem to interpret this sexually. Isn’t it a beautiful thing, friends? Why do you think it is wrong? Which god will be angry if you feed your child," said the model, Gilu Joseph to a leading Malayalam daily. “I am extremely proud of my body and only I exercise rights over it. I only do things that I think is right for me, which is why I had no qualms in taking up this project,” she added.
While her family wasn't supportive of Joseph’s choice to appear on the cover in this manner, she went ahead with it anyway because though she respects and understands their qualms, “nothing can deter me from doing what I feel is right”. “So many times, new mothers are helpless when their children cry of hunger, simply because they are unable to feed in public. This has to change. Breastfeeding is a matter of pride, and women have to be able to feed their children freely and openly. You don’t need feeding rooms to feed your children. So we figured that having a discussion around this would be the most relevant thing to do this Women’s Day,” said Moncy Joseph, editor-in-chief of the magazine. “Breasts are perceived in a sexual manner, even when a mother feeds her child. Here it is not just men, but even women who stare if a mother feeds her baby in public,” she added.
On the cover, Joseph can be seen wearing a thick line of vermillion on her forehead suggesting that she is any ordinary Indian woman with the right to breastfeed! Splashed across the cover, it says, “Mothers tell Kerala, please don’t stare, we need to breastfeed." And we agree!