Old Wives’ Tale

As if being implicated in a coal scam wasn't bad enough, Union Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal also has to deal with the consequences of voicing his opinion on wives. "Patni purani ho jati hai phir woh mazaa nahin rahtaa hai (when wives become old, there is no fun)". Somehow, it sounds a lot more brutal in Hindi. Not surprisingly, the indefatigable National Commission for Women is up in arms, reacting furiously to the minister's pedestrian observation. Except, Jaiswal should be told it works both ways. His comment, typical of all MCP's, presumes and suggests that the wives continue to be happily married, while their husbands view them as jaded, old, has-beens.

Jaiswal's remark is not without resonance, culturally. Movies like The First Wives Club — about three divorced women seeking revenge on husbands who left them for other women — validate his opinion on long-term marriages and relationships. Reams of newsprint has been dedicated to tracking the Jolie-Pitt-Aniston romance. The thrice-married Donald Trump, who famously dumped wife Ivana for a much younger woman (she has a cameo in The First Wives...) and ended up losing a lot of his fortune in alimony, had some words of advice for fellow billionaire, Mark Zuckerberg: get a pre-nup. Anyone who has been married for decades, male or female, has probably felt like Jaiswal, but some things are just better left unsaid. Especially loudly, in a gathering. One assumes Jaiswal speaks from experience. I've never set eyes on his wife but if she's old and charmless, after his remark, you can add crusty and seriously cheesed off to the list. Even the nicest, most forgiving wife would slowly roast a husband for thrusting her in the limelight for being a dull bore. And Jaiswal's seemingly harmless remark has undone him faster than far more serious allegations levied very recently. But the scathing retorts are directed solely to his unsavoury comments on wives (that have now even been adapted in an Amul ad). He's become a figure of ridicule on Twitter and the Opposition is having a field day sneeringly referring to his 'enlightened' views while burning his effigies.

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