laughing it off but its serious

It happened again.

Both during lunch and dinner. Saw the reactions of things that I consider everyday places alter significantly because of the people i was with.

Went with Jan (Yan is how you pronounce it) to a nondescript restaurant called Nandini. Jan who? A chef from Germany on vacation in India, who sails the world as a part of one of UAE's  ministers sailing boat and hence offers a glimpse into the luxuries of the ELITE RICH we cant even begin to fathom.

That is another post, and for now being shelved for later.

Nandini is a basic thali place. Eaten there numerous times and never got the treatment that i got yesterday. Someone was hovering over our table constantly, serving rice coming with more helpings before we even knew we wanted one, asking us how the food was etc etc. Its like expecting Mac Donald to suddenly start behaving like a finedining place... was laughing at what all changes because of the skin tone

Then the evening came! went with M for a dinner. Guess you can say that "I asked for it" but have always had a HUGE issue with that line of thought. Was dressed in a black dress, little above the knees and high heels. The wind was making the dress .. well whippy and to add masala to the entire evening was sitting with M... in a bar and heaven forbid actually lit a ciggie!!!!!!

That was it. Men behind me made assumptions... bolstered by the confidence of being with a bunch of boys proceeded to stare, gesticulate and went to the extent of making thumb up signs at M. The sad part of the entire evening was that this was in an up scale place, where one thinks the so called "crowd" is respectable! whatever that term means.

Ruined the evening for a large part.

But returning to the question.. Where does individual choice in attire/behaviour/company/attitude become a reflection of who you are and want to be and when is it an open invitation for societal judgement? Is dressing like all others indicative of virtue?   and interestingly is moulding ones attire to not stand out ... simply being practical or being a rat?

The above may be too deep a questioning session for a blog post on a Saturday morning. Guess its human nature to make snap judgements based on appearance, but somehow the rationale that a women dressed in skimpy clothes was asking to be raped... as has been argued by some of our esteemed lawyer friends in court makes me squirm.

Off to the hills. Dropping the dark mood before I leave the house.