Feeling Safe

You remember the part in Ghajini where Ghajini's goons were in Kalpana's house, looking for her, to kill her off? This particular scene had me terrified like I've never been, during any movie I ever saw. After I watched it the second time, it gave me a few sleepless nights. That was only a phase. It passed. But you know what continues to haunt me? The part just before that, when Kalpana tells Ghajini that, because of people like him, girls are terrified of stepping out of their homes.

Every so often, incidents ranging from chain snatching to daylight rape are reported, even in the most crowded places, ranging from the Delhi University Campus to the vicinity of malls. The more recent ones have brought home the realization that not only are girls unsafe when going out alone at night, but also when going out with a guy in the daytime. An acquaintance of mine, who often works late into the night, says that, when she takes a cab from work and is alone, she feels safer if they don't send a guard along with the driver. Because if it's just the driver, that's one man to be wary of. If there's a guard as well, that's two of them. I wholeheartedly echo her sentiment. That's what this city is coming to. A place where a girl just cannot trust a man she doesn't really know, where she absolutely cannot be assured of her safety at any time during the day.

How is a girl supposed to feel safe? How is she supposed to get her peace of mind in this city?