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One of my favourite family pictures is that of my father astride a black stallion with me as a young child, sitting with him. The picture was taken during a visit to a hill station. What is very evident from the photograph is my adoring face looking up at my father from layers of jackets and blankets packed around me.
My father's active role in nurturing has so conditioned my thoughts that it has become a yardstick for me to measure male acquaintances.
Today, men are constantly being encouraged to play a more active role in parenting, one that involves nurture. And there are many socio-economic factors responsible for this, one of the most significant being the changing composition of the traditional family.
In nuclear families with working couples among the middle class, gender roles of the male breadwinner and the female caregiver are to an extent coalescing. In several cases, women are emerging as primary financial providers as well. And the work situation demands that fathers be more "pro-active" in parenting.
It is not an uncommon sight to see fathers fit in activities like the school run, homework help or a visit to the child's doctor into their work schedule. Even the bedtime bath and story routine has come within the purview of their gaze!
And the trend is visible among young professionals in metros at least - many men have shown a sense of relief at moving away from the role of sole protector and breadwinner.
He has no problems taking care of home and children while his wife looks after the bread and butter. He is happy with his research while she meets all the family commitments through her job as a business executive.
The fact that both the parents have a vital role to play in the nurture of the child, is becoming more evident. The notion of nurture is vast: ranging from a young father who is as adept as the mother in changing nappies and making her burp, to one who realises that he will be her yardstick for many experiences later in life.
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