Everyone knows Delhi is unsafe for women, but the general perception is usually that it is so during the night and in isolated, unlit areas. We, women, try to console ourselves by thinking that at least few places would be safe from creepy and unwanted attention of the Delhi males.

Typically those places are in popular zones like high-end malls or marketplaces, one of them being Connaught Place or CP.

But when a friend of mine told me about her experience in the Starbucks outlet of CP, it really shook that perception for me.

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She, a Delhi University student, which should give you an indication of her age, decides to go to Starbucks (a high-end coffee shop) with another friend the other day.

And this is what happened to her:

A and I were sitting and chatting in Starbucks. It was a nice environment. A poetry session was going on in the background and there was a large crowd. We were talking and suddenly two guys approached us and said “HIIII!!!!”

Guy 1 – HIII!!!

I got startled because I was kind of zoned out.

Guy 1 – Omg why are Delhi people always so suspicious of people?!

 In my mind, I just thought:  Lol, wut even??? Do I know you????????

But in reality, I decided to be polite and said- Oh sorry I was actually zoning out so I got startled. Yes?

Guy 1 – Yes I need to ask you a question (sits down right in front of me). Hiiii my name is something and you are?

Me- My name is XYZ

Then suddenly guy 1 starts flirting with me.

He kept on saying the most random things like “oh are u wearing a choker??? Reminds me of 50 shades of grey. Do you like 50 shades of grey?”

And he also kept on commenting about my accent which made me really uncomfortable. He kept coming closer and closer to me and I couldn’t even push MY chair back because I was leaning on the wall.

In the midst of this, suddenly Guy no. 2 also introduced himself to me & sat right next to my friend, A, and kept on flirting with her making her very very uncomfortable. Guy no. 2 was creepier than Guy no. 1 because he told A things like

“I can be your daddy”.

Both were creepy in their own ways because Guy No. 1 told A, “oh is that a mole? I’d kiss u on the mole.”

They both even asked us personal information and asked our age and A said “I’m 18” and I said “I’m 19” and even then they both still kept flirting with us.

Guy no. 2 even told me “you’re 19? You look younger” They kept on insisting that we should let them take us out then and there only.

I finally found the right time and turned to A and said in Assamese so that they wouldn’t understand us, “A, please let us get out of here what the f*** is happening” and that’s when they both told us to stay.

Guy no. 2 then gave me his phone and asked me to give him my number while I made an excuse not to. Then he forcefully made me call him and thank goodness I didn’t have network. He kept telling me to call & text him and honestly I just wanted to get out of there so I said “yeah sure I’ll text u” and then we walked out as fast as we could.

I was scared what he’d do, I mean if he had the courage to be so straightforward in front of so many people, I don’t know what he would’ve done in a more secluded place. Before leaving, guy no. 2 very visibly took out his 2000 rupee note from his pocket dropped it on the ground.

Then he turned to A and said “you dropped your money” and when A said that it wasn’t hers, he went “It’s a 2000 rupee note are you sure you don’t want it” and A said “NO”.

I don’t understand why he did that.  Honestly, we were having such a nice time in Starbucks but we had to leave because of them :(

Honestly, it is really scary to hear something like this happen in a commercial place like CP and that too in Starbucks that’s no roadside tea-stall where you’d expect such people to approach you.

Men even after hearing of their ages didn’t back down is sickening and further shows how males here have no concept of consent.

If you are not safe even in such kind of places then where exactly are you?

Image Credits: Google Images

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