The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : How to check the unwanted advance

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

How to check the unwanted advance

Susan Muthalaly and Swahilya

Umbrella, even deodorant spray can be used as weapons

A self-defence class for women in progress. — File Photo: B. Jothi Ramalingam

Susan Muthalaly

and Swahilya

CHENNAI : The umbrella, the safety pin or the deodorant spray can serve a purpose different from what they are intended for on the streets. Martial arts trainers in the city say women can use any of these as an effective weapon to defend themselves against a male advance.

Karate and yoga instructor M. Babu has been teaching self-defence in Tiruvanmiyur for over a decade. He said most of his students are male, though he feels that everyone should learn self-defence.

He teaches a mix of self-defence and fitness classes at various schools and private companies. "From next month, I plan to start classes at IT companies as many women have to travel alone back home in the night," he said.

Women could use sprays (perfume, pepper spray deodorant) to temporarily blind the attacker. Bangles, dupattas, pins, umbrellas all come in handy, he said.

Thirty-year-old Reshma Sharma, an advocate, is a karate exponent who has trained students of various colleges, including WCC, Ethiraj, MOP Vaishnav and Kannika Parameshwari besides conducting women's self-defence workshops for the underprivileged.

A recipient of the State Government's Kalpana Chawla Award for Bravery in 2003, her former students include members of the Police Training College, Customs, Central Excise, Income Tax, and Narcotics departments.

"There have been innumerable instances of eve-teasing," she says, pointing out that she uses martial arts not to defend herself, but help others. There are many types of subtle and gross forms of violence on women on the city roads, which women tend to keep to themselves, she adds.

"A key chain tied to a duppatta can be used to hit a person who is out of hand's reach." A small five to 10 gram packet of chilly powder thrown on the nose or eyes of the assailant can destabilise him. It is important to understand the body language of the opponent and take preventive measures. One should not cross one's hands while walking on the road, which is a sign of fear, she says.

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