Down with covering up

Rishika Gupta

We are a society that celebrates Breastfeeding Week and runs campaigns like Breast is Best. We have movies like Doodh ka Karz that have immortalised dialogues like: Maine maa ka doodh piya hai. Still, we have not yet been able to stop sexualising the body part. A mother feeding the baby in public is a rarity; rarer still are offices offering baby care facilities.

Dr Anita Goyal, a gynaecologist, says breastfeeding is a taboo in India, unlike several other countries. “It becomes embarrassing for women to feed the child publically. When I joined work after delivery, my baby was just a month and a half old. I could not continue to breastfeed my child exclusively due to lack of baby care facilities at my workplace.”

Breastfeeding is a necessity in rural India where people can’t afford formula milk for their babies and nursing in public is a common sight. However, in urban India, women are frowned upon, met with dirty glances. The simple fact is: it is the baby’s need and has to be met with.

Shavet Jain, CEO of mycity4kids.com, shares her experience of breastfeeding in public. “To be honest, ‘breastfeeding’ and ‘public’ don’t go hand in hand, at least in India. When my little one was  exclusively on my feed, I had to clown myself with coverups, take refuge in the dark corners of restaurants and sometimes even ignore the embarrassment caused by passers-by. One reads about the stories of Larissa Waters and draws inspiration, but the dirty glances, the pinching glares, and the unheard whispers make one question one’s own parenting skills.”

So, what is the solution? To celebrate and encourage breastfeeding culture, we need to give full support to lactating mothers. Actress-model Lisa Haydon came up with inspiring Instagram posts on the benefits of breastfeeding. She shared that breastfeeding plays a big part in getting back into shape after delivery and that it’s a beautiful way to bond and connect with your child; the nutritional benefits apart. In her blog post with mycity4kids, she was asked: What prompted her to put up her picture of feeding her baby — a bold move in a society that still believes breastfeeding should not be ‘seen’?

She answered, “I too have felt the stigma around breastfeeding in public places. Some places provide breastfeeding rooms which, of course, mothers are more than happy to use. But in the rare instance, I have to do it in a public area. I have at times felt embarrassed or inappropriate that this should not be done publicly... And always feeling the need to hide or “go cover up”. The breast has been sold over the years as a sensual or sexual thing. When, in fact breasts, are for biological purposes meant to feed ones young. Breastfeeding is not an explicit, sexual or shameful act, it’s natural.”

Similarly, many eyebrows were raised when Assam MLA Angoorlata Deka asked for a feeding room in the assembly. “I had a one month baby when I started attending the assembly and had to make several tours from home to the Assembly for feeding the baby. Being an MLA, I can’t even avail six months maternity leave as I have to be totally active in my constituency. If there were a special room, I could bring my baby there and feed her when required.”

She says her demand was paid attention to and a special room for baby care is being constructed in the Assembly. She says it makes her happy to hear this but wants a baby care room for all nursing mothers in various public places. She has written to the chief minister of Assam and Prime Minister of India in this regard. She says every child is a blessing and children are the future of the country. “Breastfeeding is essential for babies and they, along with the mothers, should be given utmost care.”

While small changes are underway, a major respite came for new mothers last year in the form of six-month maternity leave. However, a lot still needs to be done and change will begin with changed mindsets.