Life doesn’t not always start smooth for most of us. At least it didn't for the 5 year old Rudali who lived in a small village in Haryana with her mother, father and her 20 year old uncle( her fathers' brother).

Rudali's parents, Bhushan and Leelavati worked in the local paper mill as factory workers. They made just enough money to support their family of four , that comprised of Bhushan, Leelavati, their daughter Rudali and Bhushan's brother Bhairav.

Bhairav had failed his matriculation exam last year for the 3rd time and therefore had his name struck off from the village school. Bhushan had been trying hard to get him admitted in the neighbouring village school. He had asked the village sarpanch for his 'sifarish' to get his brother an admission.

The responsibility of his younger brother had fallen on Bhushan after his parents unexpected death in the village epidemic 5 years ago. Bhushan had hardly got a chance to ever complete his education or even go to a school for that matter, but he knew the importance of it and wanted to make sure that he provides his brother with a proper one .

Bhushan’s brother, Bhairav , despite his bothers’ constant endeavours had no interests in pursuing his education . He had always been involved in lot many notorious activities and had gained a not so likeable reputation among the elders of the village. It was just a couple of months back when he was brutally beaten up at the village police chowki for teasing “Thakur Sahib’s” daughter , Mala.

He had many a times tried to seduce Leelavati , whenever his brother was not around. Leelavati had often made a subtle mention of this to her husband but was only greeted with a generous dose of thrashing for speaking ill of her brother- in- law and for trying to seduce him in the absence of her husband. She had after that decide to keep her lips sealed and ignore any kind of inappropriate gestures from her brother –in-law.

Like her mother Leelavati , Rudali didn’t really favour the presence of her uncle in the house and despised him being around her. Hmm.. .. but why should a 5 year old despise her uncle . After all don’t most of the 5 years love their uncles , they always get goodies for their young ones . But maybe in Rudali’s case things were a bit different. May be she didn’t like her uncle because of what he had been doing to her when her parents were not around.

There was something about his touch that made her feel uneasy. Though only 5 years old, she somehow did not like it when her uncle made her sit on his lap or press her close to his body . There was something that made her cry and want to break free from his grasp. She had never dared letting her parents know about this as she had seen her mother be brutally smashed in front of her own eyes.

Moreover she was grateful to her parents who were generous enough to let her live rather than have her terminated like her 4 other sisters . Not all the children born in India are born out of love , some are merely a matter of chance, a mistake and some purely born of a curse. Rudali, was born of the last category. Rudali was born on the day her grandparents died. Her father did not see her , leave alone wanting to hold her when she was born. Her mother had cursed her constantly during her birth process as she seemed have taken more time than the usual to enter the world. Maybe before she was born she knew that her mother’s womb was a safer place for her than the world she was going to step in.

Her family had mourned her birth than celebrating her entry in to the new world and they regarded as a ‘panuati’ , a curse to be born in the family.

Since Bhushan was busy in the funeral rights of his parents , he did not get the time to end the ‘panuati’ born in their family , neither could Leelavati do the same herself as she was half –dead herself after giving birth to Rudali.

I don’t know whether to attribute her survival to her good luck or her bad ones as there was nothing that made Rudali happy about her existence in the family.

Except for being a mere object of sexual exploitation for her uncle , Rudali didn’t really serve any purpose in the house than that of a additional liability and a servant maid . The innocence and the joys of childhood were something that Rudali was not destined to experience. More than being born as a curse to others she was born as a curse to herself. Her very existence stifled her.

Now after 16 years of her existence in the world , things still don’t seem to have changed much for cursed lil’ Rudali. Having the chance to get rid of her, Bhushan got Rudali married to the 40 year old Bodha , the drunkard of the village much against her consent. Bodha has been married twice and has 5 children , all sons , two of whom are much elder to Rudali.

Life has been even more devastating for the poor Rudali who now is not only subjected to the sexual obligations of her husband , but her 2 step sons also ….

The chain of these sexual assaults would probably end for Rudali with her death.

There are millions and billions of Rudali that live in our neighbourhood and probably in our own house also . Can we do something to stop sexual abuse ? Something to make sure we do not have more Rudalis’ born everyday? Something to make sue that the four walls of our houses are actually secure ???

The answer lies somewhere within us …..

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