Be careful, girl...

* For every parent, concern for daughter in the changing environment is real. Every parent tells his/her daughter to be careful in his/her own ways. Vijaya Marotkar, a teacher, is also a poet sensitive to the issues concerning these parents. And, she has found a novel way to enlighten the school and college-going girls on life at crucial junctures. 

By Kartik Lokhande 

My daughter is my pride. 

My daughter is my responsibility. 

My daughter is... intelligent, responsible, and strong. 

Everyone feels the same about his/her daughter. Everyone wants his/her daughter to be this or that. Everyone wants the society to be a safe place for daughter, in the era of technological advancements. 

And, very few have clear idea of how to enlighten daughter with proper perspective and preparing her to face life ahead. There are changes in every girl’s life at different junctures -- school, college, and marriage. And, how to meet these changes is a question that haunts the girls. 

Vijaya Marotkar, a teacher with New English Junior College, Mahal, has taken over the task of equipping girls at above-mentioned junctures through her counselling-cum-orientation programme ‘Pori Jaraa Japun...’ The name of her programme is derived from her poem with the same title. A few lines of her Marathi poem are as follows: 

“Pankh tuze balkat karnya pori, 

Saare yantrayug bagh aale dhawun; 

Tyasawe tu ghe unch bharari, 

Pan... pori jaraa japun...” 

Through these lines, Marotkar highlights that technological advancements have changed the time tremendously and the girls can utilise it to their advantage to rise and shine, however, with caution. What kind of caution does Marotkar ask the girls to exercise? 

For school-going girls, Marotkar advises her to use cellphones carefully. “School-going girls is my first audience. At present, there is an increasing trend among parents to provide cellphones to daughters going to schools. Particularly, the girls studying between Class VIII and X get cellphones. They use it for chatting, taking selfies, sharing photographs on social media and with friends. However, she needs to be careful in using cellphones and sharing images. Else, her future life could get jeopardised,” Marotkar tells ‘The Hitavada’. 

The next part of her awareness programme has been designed to enlighten college-going girls. As the girls cross the teenage, they start exercising their choices of wearing fashionable dresses, following sub-consciously what is shown in advertisements on televisions and in movies. “Many do not even realise that they are falling prey to propaganda in favour of indecency and vulgarity. And, here they might fall prey to known or unknown beasts. Hence, they must be told about decent dressing sense that will match the grace of a blooming flower,” explains Marotkar. 

The final part of ‘Pori Jaraa Japun...’ pertains to preparing a girl mentally to the biggest change of her life -- marriage. Today, says Marotkar, new-age girls are well-educated and are exposed to modern world. However, in some cases, as the girls are not prepared mentally for the process of getting adjusted in the new family, differences of opinion often result in domestic troubles. Marotkar explains, “Sometimes, this results in extreme decisions like divorce as the tension over petty issues escalates over the first few months into marriage. So, through my poems I try to tell the girls about to get married in a couple of years, how to tackle relationships -- with husband and in-laws.” 

So far, Vijaya Marotkar has conducted around 100 programmes in various schools and colleges. Apart from ‘Pori Jaraa Japun...’, she also conducts poetic programmes ‘Bai’ on life of women, ‘Chimna-Chimni’ on peaceful and co-operative family life. Why did she feel like holding programmes to make girls aware? 

“Apart from bringing about a change in societal mindset, girls also need to be equipped to deal with various situations. While living in a society, caution does help. Hence, I have taken up the responsibility of cautioning the girls through poems,” Marotkar says. Everyone says that the situation is grim, she says, but no one is stopped from lighting a lamp of hope. 

And, ‘Pori Jaraa Japun...’ is becoming increasingly popular as it triggers a thought-process among girls. It gives a great satisfaction when girls come and meet her, share their experiences, and thank her for leading them into right direction of thinking. “That’s my moment of fulfilment,” adds Marotkar with an affable smile on her face, before departing for another programme in one more college. 

(25-08-15)