Gilu Joseph may have already predicted this; her decision to feature on a popular magazine cover Grihalakshmi, breastfeeding her child is already inspiring debates and discussions all over the country. Hollywood celebrity moms have been defying these cultural norms that call for a woman to cover up her breasts while breastfeeding. Here are some celebrities who have breastfed in public. But it is the first time a celeb from India has openly taken up cudgels against this ridiculous restriction. And she has gone about with it in the bravest way possible by posing on the cover of widely-read regional magazine. The image on the cover was captioned in Malayalam, “Keralathode ammamaaru: turichu nokkaruthu; njangalkku mulayottanam.” It’s literally translated to ‘Mothers to Kerala: Don’t stare; we need to breastfeed.”

Gilu, like many others, were part of Grihalakshmi’s Brestfeed Freely campaign, an attempt on part of the magazine to de-stigmatise breastfeeding by normalising the act. It is a welcome move, considering that the society doesn’t mind inconveniencing the mother and child just because the sight of lactating breasts offend the spectator. Part of the problem is the society’s failure look beyond the aesthetic and sexual purpose of the breasts. Quite hypocritical considering that the same outrage is not seen when corporations exploit the female body and breasts to sell everything from soft drinks to motor oil.

So to get a real-woman perspective on the issue, we turned to some of our friends and co-workers and asked them whether they faced any opposition while breastfeeding their little ones. Their accounts are truly eye-opening.

“I couldn’t feed my child in front of my own husband”

Sujata belongs to an educated family of highly-qualified people. But even she wasn’t spared the shaming when she gave birth to her daughter. “I don’t think I’d ever be comfortable feeding my child in public after the humiliation I have endured. I remember the first time I was travelling from Bangalore to Chennai with Chinmayee (my daughter), she was 2.5 months old.

I had carried a shawl so that I could cover myself fully. Despite this, my mother-in-law the gazetted officer, sitting next to me used a large shawl to cover me from three sides, making it very obvious to everyone around us. I was embarrassed to say the least. But I didn’t get any reprieve from my own mother who would scold me even if I fed my child in the hall or in front of my own husband! I had to rush to the bedroom every time Chinmayee needed a feed.”

“I never breast fed in public; but there is nothing shameful about it”

Vrinda is a mother to beautiful twin babies but has never felt the need to breastfeed publically. She says, “I never breast fed in public because I think breastfeeding is a private moment of bonding between the mother and the child. I don’t think the world should be privy to it. But if there is anyone qualified to take the call (whether to feed or not to feed in public) it is the mother.

I don’t think it is anybody else’s business to decide whether it is right to feed the child in public or not. Some mothers may do it privately, others may not. But I don’t think there is a single mother in the world who would keep her child hungry to protect her own modesty.”

“Cities are good to breastfeeding mothers”

Ranjitha harks back to the time when she had to breastfeed her child in a plane 31 years ago. She reveals, “It was so long ago. One would expect people to be more narrow minded back then. But I count myself among the lucky ones who never had a bad experience breastfeeding in public. I had to breastfeed my son in the plane once and not a single person batted an eyelid. Some averted their gaze because they didn’t want to embarrass me. But I personally feel that people in the urban areas are far more accepting of breastfeeding mothers than those in the interior parts of the country.”

“Mothers themselves think it is crass”

Proud mother-of-two Debjani has some fantastic insights into the matter. She says, “Indian society has traditionally been very tolerant of breastfeeding unlike the West. Mothers belonging to the lower rungs of the society, living joint families living in crammed spaces have no choice but to breastfeed in front of other family members. It is normalised to a large extent. We see our kaamwaalis and sabziwaalis feed their children in public. The problem arises when women from middle and upper echelons of the society start thinking public breastfeeding as a class trait and a crass thing to do.”

This explains why most mothers have been on the fence about this matter for the longest time. But one thing is for sure: By broaching this “uncomfortable” topic, the magazine has set the balling rolling for another much-needed debate. And what’s a progressive move without a few naysayers. Detractors have already drawn their claws out and allegations about using Gilu Joseph’s breasts to “titillate” audience have been flying fast and thick. Inane criticisms on the lines of ‘Why does she have to show the whole breast?’ is already happening. But let’s be relieved the door is finally flung open for a discussion and the first steps towards normalising breastfeeding have already been taken.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 01, 2018 05:37 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).