A Kolkata mall shamed a mother for breastfeeding her baby. What’s more, they even told her not to bring a ‘home chore’ to a shopping centre. Now now, my dearies, isn’t that a mall-icious thing to say?
What prompted the management of South City Mall — situated in Kolkata, a leading Indian metro city — to post such a churlish reply to a woman patron is unclear. However, they have gone on to blame their social media agency for the post. The outrage, meanwhile refuses to die. If the mall wants to get past this negative coverage, looks like it might need to rework its communications strategy a little.
But first, let’s set the record clear. India is a country where women have been fearlessly breastfeeding for years. Since generations, Indian women have perfected the art of breastfeeding their child discreetly under their pallus. However the South City mall incident brings to light the misplaced morality that can sometimes guide a negative attitude towards breastfeeding.
Don’t Tell Her Where to Feed Her Child
Nobody but a mom gets to decide how her laadla/laadli should be fed. Well, if mothers had their way, they would continue to exercise this Veto power all through their lives, but it’s an especially inalienable right in the child’s infancy stage.
What if she doesn’t want to run around locating the designated nursing room while her child cries?
Sure, some women would want to use nursing rooms in public spaces like malls, airports, hotels, etc., but that is the prerogative of the mother. She and only she gets to decide where she wants to feed her child.
We are nobody to shoo a woman away and ask her to go to a private area just so we are spared the ‘horror’ of being slightly uncomfortable as she breastfeeds her child. You wanna know what’s grosser for some of us? Couples kissing in public and smothering each other in PDA as we somehow manage life in Single Basti. But are we demanding that PDA-ing couples be shooed away because we don’t like how they make us feel? Then, let our dear mata jis be.
It's a Baby's Food. Don't Make the Baby Feel Bad
Also, it’s funny how a mall of all places — a commercial coma where burger sauces dripping out of people’s mouths is a common sight, would want to police how an infant consumes his food.
To be fair, the kid is more discreetly and quietly going about having his food. He doesn’t even indulge in mindless banter and loud guffaws that will annoy other patrons.
Also unlike junk food, breastfeeding significantly improves infant survival rates. So go on kid, suck away!
Mere Meh-Boob
Boobs are more than ATMs — automatic titilating machines. Their natural role is to provide nutrition for a child. And those who can’t think of boobs this way have their brain still stuck in Kim Kardashian’s Instagram feed.
And now finally coming back to our dear friends in Kolkata, why would you make the mistake of calling the nursing of a baby a ‘home chore’? It’s like rubbing salt on the wounds of Indian mothers! Taking care of babies is a ‘chore’ for them everywhere — whether it is restaurants, holidays, trains, temples, teerth yatras... or even stupid malls.
Because truth be told, most dads in India are as involved in their kids’ care as they are in the kitchen!
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)