India, Oct. 15 -- Do you need to wear a particular type of clothes to be recognised as the 'bahu' in a family? The author talks about her experience of living in such a family.

What women wear and how they wear it are the perennial concerns of people around them. Every one thinks that they have the right to have an opinion on women's clothing. Most astonishingly, people from the same sex are often the fiercest critics of women.

As a girl from Assam, my parents never told me to dress in a particular way or manner. I was free to wear whatever I pleased. But things changed drastically after my marriage.

My in-laws had a totally different perception of a'bahu' and they wanted me to dress and act accordingly. To my surprise the entire neigh...