Unbox Yourself

August is the month to celebrate our collective freedom as Indians. But as individuals who are bound by societal norms, it is important to undo the shackles that hold us back, professionally, personally and even spiritually. Our big story analyses our conditioning and how much it takes to shrug it off and declare our choices loud and clear

PARENT TRAP

FEW HAVE THE COURAGE TO SPEAK UP AGAINST ATROCITIES, ESPECIALLY WHEN INFLICTED BY PARENTS. SHRADDHA KAMDAR SPEAKS TO BRAVE WOMEN WHO TOOK THE STEP OF CLAIMING FREEDOM FROM A TOXIC ENVIRONMENT

The question: who has had the biggest influence on your life, will have a majority of the respondents name their parents. But, what if those who are supposed to build you a safe haven and be your security net, become a threat to your very existence?

Tamoghna Ghosh, 25, was always an overachiever, and when her parents saw her aptitude, they were encouraged to push her to do ‘great things’. “I feel they might have settled for giving me a good education and marrying me off, but their mentality changed, thinking I was going to become a doctor or engineer,” she remembers. Ghosh’s mother used to coach her, but her patience threshold was extremely low. Easily irritated with her daughter, the mother would start beating her during coaching. “Over time, the problem worsened, and she would lose sight of what she was doing, to the point that it got abusive. She has stabbed me with a pencil,” she narrates.