What happened to the murals of women doing yoga on the roadside will make your blood boil. What is the truth behind this 'sick thinking'? Learn the full story here.

A shocking incident has emerged from Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh's smart city, sparking concern and debate across the country. A roadside wall mural depicting women performing yoga has been deliberately defaced with inappropriate scratches and inappropriate markings, creating a highly vulgar image. The damage, specifically targeting the faces and private parts of the female figures, is far more than a prank and points to a deeper problem of disrespect for women's dignity. A clip is rapidly going viral on social media, sparking widespread anger.

Murals were incorrectly scratched

Notably, the murals featured plain, black figures of women in various yoga poses, without faces. They were intended to beautify the city's streets and promote health and fitness as part of a "smart city" initiative. The damage wasn't typical vandalism. Specific parts of the figures were targeted, and scratches and marks were applied to sexualize the artwork.

In response to public outrage, a local resident took the initiative to repaint the damaged parts of the murals himself. Authorities have yet to identify the culprits responsible for the vandalism.

Identifying a distorted mindset

Social media users have strongly condemned this act, calling it a result of a "distorted mindset" and "poor thinking" in society. The incident has been linked to the larger issue of how women are treated and objectified in the country. Many have lamented that women are not safe, even in artistic portraits of them on public walls.

One user wrote, “We say we are free. Is this freedom? Then people ask, ‘What was our girl wearing?’ An animal is an animal, no matter how well it is taught.” Another said, “The sick mentality of men and women is more aggressive and common in the Hindi belt than anywhere else in the country.”

Repair work ongoing

In a further update, an Instagram video revealed that the damaged murals are now being repainted from scratch. The damaged areas have been covered, and repairs are underway to bring the artwork back to life.

While the repainting has been praised as a positive step, many online users pointed out that while fixing the wall is easy, fixing the mindset is a much bigger challenge. One person commented, "They should repaint the women's images and let everyone know that respecting women is humanity. It should be written on the wall that anyone trying to sexualize the painting could face jail time." Another said, "It's like this... we can't fix cheap thinking... so girls should stay at home or wear a scarf when going out. If they can't find the culprits, just erase the art. It's even more disturbing now. As long as they don't completely repaint it, it'll be fine."

PC:Inkhabar