Bhabi Janen?
If celebrities think they have it hard because paparazzi give them no freedom and privacy, then they clearly have never heard of the lives of teenagers in Bangladesh and their dear aunties and uncles.
I think it's safe to say that every single one of us have met at least one aunty or uncle who has made our lives just a bit (or a lot more) worse than it need to be. I wonder if they have a secret parent alliance that no kids are allowed to know about, and they hold meetings at almost every coaching centre waiting room, in front of school gates, or at one of their living rooms. Their only topic? Our personal lives.
Even though there are, unfortunately, countless places where we might have to face these people, they all somehow fall into a few of the same categories of "privacy invaders".
The No Personal Space Enforcers
These aunties and uncles believe that there should be minimum distance between them and their children at all times. This means that whenever you hang out with these kids, you hang out with their parents too. They go everywhere with them — classes, restaurants, movies, you name it. I don't know how you like to chill but I surely don't want baby boomers in my squad.
The Gawkers
When I was younger, never had I imagined I would have to someday fight my urge to tell an aunty of all people, "My eyes are up here." This group consists of only aunties and is after mostly girls. Don't even get me started on what they discuss with each other after their staring periods have ended.
The Rumour Generators
These aunties and uncles are more in the loop than I am most of the time and would probably be able to successfully run tabloids if they ever wanted to quit their long-lasting professions of ruining our lives. The fastest way to transfer information, in my opinion, is the Aunty Network. It takes them minutes to spread rumours like wildfire. However, just like Chinese whispers, the rumours get altered every few aunties, and you end up being known for something you have never done.
The Complaint Makers
A boy sat next to a girl in class. Oh no, the world's about to end. This is horrifying. What ever could we do? Oh, I know! Let's go complain to the teachers about this incident that is completely unrelated to them and make sure they do something about it. Please leave us and our teachers alone. We're too stressed out already to even think about taking on anything more.
Till now, I have had no luck in finding a solution to this problem. Perhaps all of us could collectively go up to the aunties and uncles and say the magic word and hope that they'll get their priorities straight? Ah, who am I kidding? This problem is as old as time.
Mayabee Arannya is a confused soul still searching for a purpose. Give her advice on life at facebook.com/mayabee.arannya
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