Sizzling Success: Knocking Patriarchy Off the Platter -3

JUST A FEW STEPS AWAY

Blog 3 – 29.04.2024

            Last time's inactivity and dejection were heavy on our tender hearts. After aeons of constant to-and-fros, it was time for some movie-masala action! Exactly one week later, we were slated to meet the Director of Human Resources, Malika*, at Chain 1. Our journey was culminating in bearing fruits. Hopefully, we will be able to interview the chef there this time.

            This time, as directed by Tara* earlier, we slipped into formals. Some of us did not have it at the requisite moment because it was an ad hoc meeting. Hence, we had to navigate several rooms in our respective rooms and execute our plan flawlessly. Adding several layers of clothes was an affliction because the heat would go nowhere. Instead, its omnipresence blessed us – with skin-related complications. We dearly thank Chennai's magnanimous weather for bestowing the same upon all of us.

            Formals had become a scar upon our psyches at this point. This disciplining of the human body restricted and compartmentalised us into uniform boxes, with our cultural markers being robbed. As Tara threw a surprise at us, asking us to accompany them for lunch, we felt we were shot at with tasers. On the one hand, we were hyperconscious about the images we wanted to show – one of us did not have our lunch in haste. From another perspective, we wanted to conduct a sociological survey regarding food practices and differentials within the culinary space. And the greed of having a 5-star dish was irresistible! So, we decided to embark upon this novel micro journey within this macro project. We aimed to survey the social interaction and food habits of the silently nestled staff section. 

            The Director Malika*, in contrast to other employees, was decked with a Sari. This opened a pandora's box of a plethora of assumptions – was this an emphasis on belonging to a different class category, or was this a statement to reclaim autonomy from this relentlessly corporatised world by adorning feminine ideals (which so happen to align with masculine perceptions of feminine beauty)? Uniform-wearing was the predominant norm: it posited a dual role of embracing a shared humanity and sidelining all differences, but at the same time, there was a suppression of individuality and personal ideas, which gave way to cohesion and a singular corporate identity which looked at honing the legacy of Chain 1's American founder and match his all-encompassing, pure aura. In the background, music of different genres and languages bellowed. Was this a hint at embracing multicultural identities? We found this feature quite avant-garde, not having witnessed this ever before. We expected ceramic plates to be extensively used; instead, we observed how steel trays and plates were used – like back at our messes at IIT Madras. Everywhere, the underlying assumption was that we were here for placement (hence, the term placement coordinator was quite often thrown around). Every moment, we replied solemnly, mumbling, "We are here to take an interview."

            It was very gripping that the space was not segregated explicitly and that people were eating with their hands rather than the modernity/civilisation marker of eating with spoons, which was not in line with Western cultural imports associated with corporatisation and professionalism. The undergrounding of all these facilities and processes was curious, as if they were something to be disdained about. The murals painted meticulously on walls depicted a calm, mindful vibe, which directly ran in contrast to the employees' work profile at such chains. 

            Once our lunch was done, we headed to DHR Malika's room. Unfortunately, she had a meeting scheduled right at the nick of time, so it was an unforeseen wait in the common room. The clock's needle swung back and forth as our eyes tried to follow them, estimating the time to be taken for the interview. Many magazines were lying around the table; a dedicated wooden bookshelf was created to stock them. A diary of Chain 1's parent company listed all its achievements throughout the decades – it gave tough competition to Sharmaji ka beta. The magazines illustrated women in bridal wear, and ramp walks alongside one-liners of quotes from die-hard fashionistas. Our wait lasted for 30 minutes; we dozed off with negligence since we were too fatigued even to comprehend the consequences of our actions.

Finally, Mallika arrived, only to drop even more bombshells. First, she, like Tara, asked us to go through our project again; she wanted to hear it from our respective mouths. Somehow, we mumble-jumbled our way through, completely running parallel to an unsynchronised ensemble. We were sure of the fact that if it were the North Koreans in Malika's place, we would have been executed or placed in a hard-labour concentration camp.

After listening to us with great intent, Malika was ready to shatter our hearts even more. While she approved the interviewing process, she added a caveat: 'subject to their availability'.

Pin-drop silence. We didn't know how to react. Were we supposed to cry or be happy?

Malika elucidated the entire situation after we requested her to enlarge upon the same. She mentioned two difficulties: aligning the timings of the chef along with our schedule back at IIT Madras, and secondly, one of them was on leave, trying to sort out family-oriented issues back in her hometown. It was a double whammy none of us anticipated, and another period of numbness, fear and anxiety waited to engulf us, submerging and washing us away into the nothingness of the deep oceans of perturbation.

            So, the wait will never end. Our project is slated to be a barren field, given how we are progressing. There is no light; it is all tunnels and darkness. Will we make it in time? Only time shall tell.

"Anxiety is love's greatest killer. It makes others feel as you might when a drowning man holds on to you. You want to save him, but you know he will strangle you with panic." ― Anais Nin, Goodreads.