Aunties Without Husbands, Children, or Regrets

Nashia Rizvi reflects on the aunties we were taught to pity and what their lives reveal about womanhood beyond marriage and motherhood.

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If advertising truly is a mirror of the times then this Tata Airlines (Now Air India) route map is evidence of how different regions of South Asia was seen and represented 83 years ago. (Available now)

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Recommended Reads:

Dear South Asian Men, Nice Is Not a Personality

Why Can I Express My Feelings in English but Not in My Mother Tongue?

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Aunties Without Husbands, Children, or Regrets

When asked in an interview if she would ever marry again, actress Rekha responded, “In my mind, I am married to myself, my profession, and my loved ones. I am not a cynical person.”

While for the boys in my family, my parents found male examples in our community to appreciate and point out as sources of inspiration, for myself and my sisters, women were used as examples to discourage us. It could have been the unmarried aunt, the divorcee cousin who refused to marry again, or the widow who never allowed her grief to prevent her from enjoying life. She could have had her own apartment, a travel passport stuffed with stamps, an expensive collection of handbags, or even the sheer audacity of using an entire Sunday afternoon for herself, however, that was never referred to as freedom; it was always a warning.