MUMBAI, November 5: Amidst the rustle of silk, permed locks and manicured nails, the lot of the urban Indian woman was discussed at length this morning. The occasion was a seminar on `Urban Indian women: 50 years of independence and change' organised by `Indus International' and the ladies wing of the Indian Merchant's Chamber (IMC) at the Bajaj Bhawan.

Pritish Nandy, the only male panelist scheduled to speak on `How men regard women's issues in India' was absent (The audience was told that he rushed off to Delhi without informing the organisers).

Journalist Manjeet Kriplani and office executive Rosie Catherwood narrated personal experiences to point out the `similarities and differences among Indian women and others'.

"Indian men believe that white women are loose. An executive director had the gall to make a heavy pass at me. Despite being decently dressed, I have had men touching me in elevators and at social gatherings, something they would not do to an Indian woman fearing her family will retaliate. I simply hit them hard with my briefcase. It is sad that this actually happens and I am forced to react this way," said Catherwood describing her experiences as a white woman professional in India.

Kriplani in turn said that men in the West perceive an Eastern woman as an `exotic flower'. Describing women of the East and West as sisters under their skin, Kriplani gave the example of her woman boss in the United States."The lady married at 37 (her first marriage) and had a four month old son.

At the same time, she was pressed for working on a certain political campaign. Her husband helped out by agreeing to return home an hour earlier every day. But this lady used to wake up at 5 am, play with her child for an hour and leave for work. "During the day she would call home twice and call her husband once to tell him she loved him. She would come home, cook and eat with her family and take professional calls till midnight."

``This woman," said Indus International President Nina Kilachand, ``was no different from the women commuters of Mumbai juggling home and work.''

Speaking on `Managing Change in the Urban Indian family', journalist Vimla Patil said, "When I sought to change my position in the family, my husband told me that nothing is free in life and that I should work to achieve my equal status." Former Sheriff Bakul Patel exhorted women to use education and financial independence as the two vital tools to work towards empowerment.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.