You would expect to be safe in the capital, but the truth is women face harassment almost every time they step out of their houses. Combine it with a northeastern ethnicity, and the racist attacks seem unending. Sadly, that’s what happened with Ngurang Reena as well when she visited a Blue Tokai cafe in Delhi.

She took to Twitter to share the ordeal she faced when she visited one of Blue Tokai’s units. It wasn’t just the experience she had with some people visiting the cafe but it was the inaction from the management as well, that added to her disappointment.

This is what happened with Reena. Some men don’t realize or perhaps choose to ignore how uncomfortable they are making the women around them feel. And women are expected to ignore the behaviour for their own safety.

But till when? When she confronted these harassers, instead of accepting their mistakes they hurled back remarks about her physical appearance. Cause, of course, people from the northeast are not ‘Indians’ in their eyes. Even other people present there didn’t come to her rescue. 

She tried to take help from the management as well but to no avail. 

Soon after Reena shared her ordeal, the cafe came into action and apologised for the incident. According to them, the team member did try to intervene. 

Blue Tokai assured her that they would be conducting training with all of their cafe members. 

Some people didn’t like this corporate-y approach much and called them out on this. 

People came in support of Reena and condoned the behaviour of the two men. They also expect the cafe to be better equipped to deal with such incidences.

But does this end here? Is this the last time a person from the northeast was made to feel like an outsider in their own country by people who feel like they own the country? Doesn’t really seem so.

Who can change that though? It’s us. You don’t make racial comments against people? Great! But do you step in when you see someone doing it? If not, then that’s what you need to do. If those people present in the cafe decided to step in, Reena wouldn’t have to fight her battle alone. All of us collectively can aim to make it a better place for everyone. ‘We’ need to do better.

Also Read | 8 Harrowing Incidents Of Racial Abuse Towards People From Northeast That Should Put The Nation To Shame