Aarnav Tapan Deshpande- Week 6

"Why Loiter - Radical Possibilities for Gendered Dissent" by Shilpa Phadke, Shilpa Ranade and Sameera Khan

Shilpa Phadke, Shilpa Ranade and Sameera Khan in the preface to their widely appreciated book “Why Loiter?” dissect rather ironically, the need and distress faced by women in reclaiming a right that wouldn’t even prima facie strike one as being a ‘right’, the right to loiter. They draw a distinction between the contemporary women’s rights movements that have mainly focused on violence against women and this ask of theirs which is encompassed in womens’ right to pleasure as it by default includes better access to safety which thus serves a function in the larger picture of reducing gender violence.

The authors put their focus on the city of Mumbai, known to be one of the safest public spaces in the country for women, albeit this safety is reserved for the women belonging to a certain societal class, boasting a certain sense of morality that is connoted to their class hierarchy. The way the authors paint the picture of a certain ‘tapori’ figure serves as a perfect example of the deep entrenched class hierarchies.

They also stress on the unsaid responsibility posed on women where they are compelled to showcase a purpose for their physical presence in public spaces, by ways of dressing and representing religious and familial identities.