Women playing khuru has become a hot topic on Kuensel forum. The cultural shift has received as much praise as it’s been mocked. There are ones who appreciate the participation of women in keeping the spirit of the traditional game while others consider it gross and even ominous. There are ones who think women are finally seeing life beyond their kitchens while others think they are creating mockery of the game.
And there are a few people, including khuru players themselves, who declared (on BBS) playing khuru is a sign that women are equal to men and that they can do what men can do, which is when I started laughing and even doubting the intention.
If ladies truly enjoy playing the game then they must play. It boosts social interaction and physically fitness. It kills boredom and punctures daily frustration, and yes even let their husbands know how it feels like to be left alone on weekends and losars, ha ha ha. But if it is done to prove their equality with men then I wish to tell them how wrong they are. It is a gross misunderstanding of the principle of gender equality. In that case wearing gho instead of kira would speak louder than just torturing themselves under scorching sun playing khuru.
 |
| Woman playing khuru. Graceful? ( From Nopkin.com) |
There are a thousand ways women could justify their strength; there is no short of inspiration, motivation and right. Khuru is a wild game; throwing khuru and hitting target is one thing while screaming and dancing like crazy is another. Women are icon of beauty and grace but watching them play khuru on TV really freaked me. Khuru was a wrong choice. It’s like selling your hair to buy a comb.
Khuru: a traditional Bhutanese dart game, played usually by men.
Losar: new year day, but now it refers to any special holiday.
Gho: National dress for men
Kira: national dress for women.
i had a chance to witness this very uncommon event amongst women while i visited taktsang few years back. to my astonishment, a woman hit the target. And much to add to the already uncommon event that was, they gathered around the hit target and danced. what was the occasion? It was Guru rinpoche's Birthday. Well, i am sorry to take it in this way, its purely fake. there was nothing sort of joy in taking the tradition to next level of conservation and interest, but the fact that taktsang was right up there by virtue of which these women could make tourist sit there to witness it, could have been the best possible answer any by-passers could get. if it was for fun and upholding the tradition which was in the first place a tradition of a man, then they should have firstly made a point of realizing the occasion. it would have had a better impression if it was some sort of a festival.
ReplyDeletebut then speaking about the women getting out of the kitchen and making its move along with the men, i support your point of drawing motivations and inspirations from other than such activities. there are unlimited.
well, the debate could well go long, but then women of all activities, if they are happy and okie with such a thing called khuru, then its time we compete with some of them next time we conduct a tournament...they can really make a good competitor...believe me i still remember that woman hitting the target and others celebrating it..
cool Sir!
ReplyDeletehey Passu, In competing with men, there is one thing that women cant do..... Women can't pee standing like men. ha ha ha ha.....I heard this line long time ago from K C Jose.
ReplyDeleteBut looks like now the time has changed everything...I saw a picture in FB where women can even do that...
PSN
This is the ridiculous rights that women in bhutan are fighting for. I would much prefer if we women fought for the basic fundamental right to be able to register our child as bhutanese without having to drag unwilling fathers to the census dept. denying the right to be able to register ones child citizenship without the father is a gross violation of rights as an individual , forget as a women. I wonder if the educated elite women and men who insist that women are privileged in bhutan stems from their inability to recognize the fact that being able to boss ones hubby at home does not amount to women being equal in fron of the law
ReplyDeleteI apologize if I have ruffled few feathers with my comments above. Its just that I see such cases in my practice on a daily basis and it pains me to see young mothers cringe when they are asked to name theirs child' s name soon after delivery. And it pains me even more when a poor little kid grows up cringing every time he or she comes across those umpteen forms with " father's name" demanding to be filled.i feel it should be equal rights as based on being a rightful citizen, with no need of women's right or men's right. It should be simple...give the rights ...absolutely no need to differentiate into men, women, transgender etc. life would be far simpler. Thanks .
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete