Ashwina Garg, Author at Arré

“Saheb Kahaan Hai?”: The One Question that Makes Every Married Woman Instantly Invisible

Ask any married Indian woman, and they’ll tell you about how easily the world renders them invisible. It’s as if the minute you take your husband’s surname, you cease to exist. From then on, you’re just a floating genie, who has only one master: “Saheb”. But instead of fighting it, I'm going to make my invisibility my superpower.

Ashwina Garg July 22, 2016

Gender

How to Slowly Give Up on Vrats: A Married Indian Woman’s Cheat Sheet

“Why do you fast if it makes you so cranky,” my daughter asked. Really, why are women expected to fast, especially for the well-being of the patidev, who anyway fritters away this hard-won long life by watching cricket matches and silly political debates on television?

Ashwina Garg July 11, 2016

POV

Three Cheers for the Mediocre Mommies

Wedged between the career woman and the domestic goddess, is the Not-So-Supermom. The world admires women who fall neatly into those two categories but can be quite cruel when you don’t fit into either.

Ashwina Garg July 7, 2016

POV

How to Find Inner Peace: Lessons from the New-Age Dhongi Babas

It’s become quite common to bump into a wannabe guru spouting gibberish disguised as deep insights about the universe. Inspired by the phenomenal success of holistic healers like Sadhguru and Baba Ramdev, they’re trying their luck at turning spirituality into a business.

Ashwina Garg June 2, 2016

POV

Thodi Si Jo Pi Li Hai: Why Can’t So Many Indian Men Handle Their Alcohol?

Most Indian men don’t drink alcohol to discern the fruity bouquet of a robust wine or savour the long finish of a single malt. If they are pretending to do this, they are either trying to impress a woman or their boss. Indian men drink to get drunk.

Ashwina Garg May 22, 2016

POV

The Curious Case of the Parent-Dependent Indian Millennial

Except for their height and education, nothing has really changed about my now grown-up kids. I think I might be the one to blame. I turned into that dreaded beast: the helicopter parent, who controlled their routine, and now my children depend on that control.

Ashwina Garg May 11, 2016

POV

Why I Might Lose My Feminist Club Membership

I think not having a #MeToo story to tell is a great story by itself. It is a story of hope. It is validation of the fact that we can rely on at least a few good men and some of them are on our side.

Ashwina Garg May 9, 2016

Gender

Why We Need to Stop Judging Women Who Sport the Sindoor

To sindoor or not to sindoor, is just one of the big questions in the lives of married women today. It has been vilified as a sign of patriarchy. We rarely have such intense feelings about toe rings and mangalsutras.

Ashwina Garg May 8, 2016

Modern Family

How I Lost My Kids to Technology (And Later Won Them Back)

One day you’re the centre of your children’s universe – and then suddenly, you’re not. You’re never quite prepared for the way technology steals them away from you. They sit, their faces aglow in the light of their phone screens, chuckling to themselves. Like my kids, my overactive imagination is not my friend either.

Ashwina Garg May 3, 2016

POV

Why Do We Celebrate Bhai Dooj but Ridicule Karwa Chauth?

We are extremely vocal about the inherent patriarchy of festivals like Karwa Chauth, but we still celebrate Bhai Dooj. This is a strange dichotomy because both festivals are based on the same concept – that man is stronger than woman, who is always in need of protection.

Ashwina Garg April 3, 2016