As the country collectively boils over Bangalore’s New Year Mass molestation case, the girls’ colleges of Delhi University have collectively undertaken the decision to ban all singers and rappers with sexist and misogynist lyrics in their songs.
“We have never considered these mainstream Punjabi singers to perform in our fests. A big reason behind that are their highly sexist and offensive lyrics. Miranda House as an institution stands for feminism and to endorse these singers means going against something we stand for.” said Shalu Chattha, President of Student Union, Miranda House.
“I don’t agree with this ban on Punjabi singers in girls’ colleges. But they may have a different perspective and our college has a different perspective on calling these artists,” said Kuldeep Agnihotri, Join Secretary of Student Union, Aurobindo College, DU.
Recently, Sona Mohapatra had slammed IIT- Bombay in a Facebook post for being sexist as organisers refused to let her perform without a male co-artist in their annual cultural festival, Mood Indigo.
The common sentiment of shunning offensive lyrics that go on to become a part of pop-culture is echoed among many girls’ colleges across Delhi University. With the rise in cases of molestation, rapes and eve teasing around the nation, it is essential to take actions that will help in limiting and ultimately curbing misogyny in mass culture.
While the step is welcome, it raises other questions. These same colleges use the same songs in other events. Popular songs are also used by dance societies as performance tracks. Events like fresher and farewell parties also include playing such songs.
How far does the step of banning artists go when these same songs are played for other purposes?
While that may be a relevant question, the step can be seen as a beginning of a change and is welcomed by many.
DU Beat also tried getting in touch with LSR- often touted as the poster college for feminism in Delhi University. The Student Union President wasn’t keen on giving any answers. On being asked to give a generic non-political statement on the promise of anonymity, the president was silent and resisted commenting on the same.
Feature Image Credits- Paurush Bhardwaj for DU Beat
Spread the warmth is an initiative undertaken by Sanchie Shroff and Shiv Kumar Bansal, both being students of Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi. The campaign, is a pan-India cloth collection and distribution drive happening across seven cities namely Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Patna, Chennai, Kolkata and Siliguri.
The Collection Mechanisms:
1. Collection Centers: Set up collection centers at 75 retail outlets of Big Bazaar across the seven Indian cities.
2. Schools and Colleges: Contact various school and college authorities for implementing this drive
3.Doorstep Collection: Set up volunteer meeting points in Delhi where people from across the city/volunteers from NGOs/ students from schools and colleges voluntarily come together to ensure maximum collection.
Major Highlights of ‘Spread The Warmth’s journey so far:
1. The collection drive across 75 Big Bazaar stores began on the 1st of January, 2017
2. Various Schools and colleges in Bangalore, Chennai and Delhi have initiated the campaign already.
3. Our Siliguri team conducted the Doorstep Collection on 28th and 29th December, 2016. They collected 13.02 Quintals of clothes in just 8.5 hours.
On the 8th of January, 2017 we will be conducting a doorstep collection drive in Rohini Sector 9. We request everyone, to join us for the Doorstep Collection Drive in Rohini. To volunteer, they can follow this link: https://goo.gl/forms/xSn37MJoDnWcsvsV2. We would like to inform all the residents of Rohini Sector 9 to contribute to this cause and keep the clothes ready for contribution on 8th.
With the support of esteemed organisations like the Future Group (Big Bazaar), Safexpress, Goonj, Lions Club, etc., we aim to collect tonnes of clothes and impact thousands of lives across the nation.
As a part of the Centre’s Smart City project, the inner and middle circles of Delhi’s Connaught Place will be made traffic -free for three months beginning from February.
The literal and figurative heart of Delhi built by Edwin Lutyens in 1933; the destination which people fix to meet to plan their subsequent departures; the circular structure reigning on the map; the very famous ‘CP’shall not be the same anymore starting February.
The middle and inner circles of the Delhi arena have been proposed as no-vehicle zones by the Ministry of Urban Development. The move comes as a fragment of the experimental project of Smart City coined to commence next month for a period of three months. A pilot endeavour proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June last year, Smart City’s primary objective revolves around a holistic urban development of cities. As a part of Phase 1, 20 cities have been selected to commence the project.
The proposal for barring traffic from these areas is to introduce and propagate the idea of ‘pedestrianisation,’ a step towards embellishing the heritage structures located in the Delhi areas. The concept seeks to enhance the outlook of the location; canvassing around the potentials of landscaping, the development of water bodies, public plazas, side walk cafes, sound shows and street festivals. A favourable outcome of this initiative is to gain inputs about the traffic condition and assimilate the experiences of shop owners and the customers. Zooming in on the functional aspect of it, Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu plans to facilitate the creation of a vehicle-free area through the introduction of ‘park and ride’ services. These will be located at Shivaji Stadium. Baba Kharak Singh Marg, and Palika Parking; constituting a total parking capacity of 3,172 vehicles, a number which is currently under-utilised. The usage of cycles and battery-operated vehicles will be encouraged at the ‘park and ride’ locations to smooth over the inconveniences in terms of transportation to the business district by those who use public as well as personal modes of conveyance.
By restricting the parking zones in Connaught Place, space made available will be used to facilitate the implementation of an integrated and a wholesome hub for the visitors.The Union Minister cites the idea of a “congestion-free, accident-free, and crime-free experience to visitors” as the driving motive behind the ban on vehicles in the region.
While an ambitious project in itself, the digitisation scheme of the current government is too far-fetched to be completed by 2019, without getting the basics of a fast and efficient cross-country wifi network in place first.
2016 truly gave India a chance to revamp the global lexicon. We came up with our own brand early on—‘Digital India’—and followed it up in the same breath with the inclusion of hefty words such as ‘demonetisation’ and ‘digitisation’. It is all tied to global stardom for the country, a power from above assures us. All this while we fret over our obsolete smartphones and try to find a way out of the maze of payment-related apps being launched every day. The whole of it (constantly amplified by news channels as a fiasco) takes place against the backdrop of Reliance’s Jio confidently announcing the rollback of its free wifi services post March, 2017. India is well and truly on the global platform now. It just has a slight limp.
The premise of digitisation rests singularly on our access to fast and affordable wifi connectivity. While Eastern Europe and countries like Lithuania boast of some of the highest broadband speeds, South Korea passed the hundred per cent wifi penetration mark way back in 2012. These are significant red blinkers for India. It still considers any modest speed above 512 kbps to be ‘broadband’. In other countries, this speed is as high as 10 to 50 mbps. However, an increase in speed and connectivity cannot be achieved overnight. It will involve a complete renovation of the cross-country network of expensive optic fibre pipes which haul the bits and in turn provide the speed. The demand is not just for ‘free’ wifi but efficient wifi.
CP has turned out to be the prime example of things going awry for a scheme which aspires to connect over 2,00,000 villages by 2019. The ground reality is mired in municipality disputes. Despite floating tenders multiple times, the authorities have not heard from respondents for a project which would have made the high-end hangout hub a fully wifi-enabled zone. For now, it’s back to expensive data packs for those of us who can splurge two hundred bucks a month for basic speed. For others, at the moment, even the thought of shelling out a four figure sum for a mobile phone sounds like a nightmare.
Amidst various ups and downs, 2016 was another year of significant happenings in Delhi University. Let us take a chronological glance at the events that shaped the year for all.
January
photo credit: dnaindia
Ram Janmabhoomi Seminar
The much talked about Ram Janmabhoomi Seminar which was kicked off by Subramanian Swamy in the arts faculty of Delhi University led to heavy opposition and protests by parties like NSUI and AISA, who opposed the seminar as an attempt by NDA govt. to saffronize the campus.
Ramjas College starts yearlong centennial celebrations
Ramjas College which completes 100 years this year, kicked off its yearlong centennial celebrations with Tonga Rides and the releasing of balloons in the air.
February
Photo Credit: CMI Education World
St. Stephens College gets a new principal
Prof. John Varghese joined as the new principal of St. Stephens College after the end of the controversial term of Valson Thampu.
March
Photo Credit: Indian Express
DU gets a new Vice-Chancellor
After a month of his appointment and bureaucratic hassles, Prof. Yogesh K. Tyagi joined as the new Vice Chancellor of Delhi University.
April
Photo Credit : NDTV.com
Priyadarshini Chatterjee wins Femina Miss India 2016
Priyadarshini Chatterjee, a student of Sociology at Hindu College won the Femina Miss. India 2016. The beauty pageant veteran had won the Femina Miss. Delhi too, which gave her an entry to Miss. India.
Bhaskar Sen wins Karate US Open World Championship
Bhaskar Sen, a student from Sri Venkateswara College won the Karate US Open World Championship. Having won many more championships earlier, this one was just adding another feather to his hat.
May
Photo Credit: Indian Express
Hindu College cancels girls’ hostel admission
After heavy protest and strikes by students and teachers of the college and later by DUSU led to the intervention of Delhi Commission of Women (DSW) in the issue of exorbitant fees of Hindu College girls’ hostel, the college cancelled the girls’ hostel admissions for this year.
Tina Dabi tops the UPSC Civil Service Exams
Tina Dabi, an alumnus of Lady Shri Ram College topped the much sought after UPSC civil services exam. She cleared the exam in her very first attempt.
June
Photo Credit: Exam Watch
Delhi University admissions goes entirely online
In a first attempt, admissions of Delhi University was made entirely online. But the glitches in the online mode like the web server crashing on the first day of admissions made the process draw some criticism.
July
Photo Credit- DU Beat
DUTA protest delays results of students
Teachers of Delhi University protested against an UGC notification that increased the working hours of teachers and this led to Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) boycotting the admission and evaluation process of University. Only after the notification was withdrawn, teachers joined the evaluation process.
August
Photo Credit- NDTV.com
DUSU Elections goes paperless
Worried over excess paper wastage, National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered Delhi University to conduct paperless elections this year. Although the authorities tried their level best by damaging hoardings and tearing posters of candidates, many candidates were still seen wasting paper.
Ceiling collapses in Daulat Ram College
Owing to its sad history of maintenance, a ceiling collapsed in Daulat Ram College injuring a couple of students and blew up the lid of pathetic condition of infrastructure in the University.
October
Photo Credit – Arindam Goswami for DU Beat
Law faculty students go on hunger strike
The students of law faculty went on a hunger strike demanding supplementary exams and rechecking of their papers. The strike also found the dean of the faculty going on a parallel hunger strike. The strike was called off after discussions and assurance of the Vice Chancellor.
AISA’s meeting disrupted by ABVP
AISA’s seminar on ‘Idea of University’ was disrupted by ABVP members who latter even roughed up several members of AISA including its president. Both sides got into a scuffle, after which the event was cancelled. The surprising fact was, all of this happened even after heavy police presence.
November
Photo Credit: DU website
DU holds its 93rd annual convocation
Delhi University held its 93rd annual convocation in the University Stadium, which awarded PhDs and gold medals to successful passing out students.
Prof. Nandini Sundar arrested
Prof. Nandini Sundar, a sociologist from Dept. of Sociology, Delhi School of Economics who authored the popular book “The Burning Forest- India’s war in Bastar” was arrested by the Chattisgarh police. The arrest which drew lot of criticisms from academic circles was dropped after the high court pulled up the police for its malicious attempt to frame the teacher.
December
President visits St. Stephens College
Shri Pranab Mukherjee-Hon. President of India visited St. Stephens College on account of its founder’s day.
There are some happenings that drew everyone’s attention across the year.
Pinjra Tod Movement
Photo Credit- DU Beat
The Pinjra Tod Movement which began as a facebook page turned into a great call for revolution within academic institutions to relook on its hostel policies which cage students with curfew times. The movement not just grew largely in Delhi University but also spread to other parts of the country.
Amidst all these happenings that marked our calendars of 2016, we grew a year older. We at DU Beat kept you updated with happenings around the campus in 2016 and promise to do better this year. With hopes of good days ahead and cash filled ATMs, we wish you a happy new year ahead.
2016 has been a significant year, in both national and international political arenas. Political events all around the world have made headlines this year, and these developments will leave an impact for years to come. The whole world had its eyes on the US Presidential elections and its results in November, while simultaneously Narendra Modi went forward with the boldest economic-political reform of Demonetisation. Here is an overview of International and National politics in 2016:
International Politics:
Donald Trump elected as the Presidential successor to Barack Obama in USA:Photo credit – National Review.
After Barack Obama served 2 successive terms as the President of the United States from 2009 to 2017 as a representative of the Democratic Party, Donald Trump was elected as the new president of the United States of America as a Republican Nominee on November 8th, 2016. He chose Mike Pence, the sitting governor of Indiana, as his running Vice Presidential candidate. Trump won the election against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by popular vote, even though exit polls showed Clinton winning over Trump. Trump’s populist positions in opposition to illegal immigration and various trade agreements, such as the Trans-Pacific partnership earned him support in male voters and white blue-collar
Rising Unrest in Aleppo:Photo Credit- CNN
The Battle of Aleppo is a part of the ongoing Syrian Civil War which began in 2016. Aleppo has been a prime site for open and major military confrontation involvingthe Syrian opposition (including Free Syrian Army, and Sunni fighters, including Levant Front) in close cooperation with the Army of Conquest, which includes within it Al-Nusra Front, formerly al-Qaida’s Syrian branch, against the Syrian Armed Forces of the Syrian Government, supported by Hezbollah and Shiite militias and Russia, and against the Kurdish People’s Protection Units. This war has created enormous humanitarian unrest in Aleppo, due to which the civilians face death, bombing, constant patrolling, lack of food or medicines and a general loss in life and livelihood. Many Syrians have been lucky enough to migrate from their homeland and seek better lives outside their nation, however many of them still live in Aleppo with a constant fear of death. The current state of Aleppo has created major international uproar which aims at rehabilitating the lives of those who have been suffering.
Initiation of the new Secretary General of the United Nations:Photo Credit: moroccoworldnews.com
On 13 October 2016, The United Nations General Assembly appointed by acclamation the former Prime Minister of Portugal,António Guterres, as the next United Nations Secretary-General, to succeed Ban Ki-moon when he steps down on 31 December 2016.
Assasination of Russian Ambassador:Photo Credit: CNN
Andrei Karlov, Russia’s ambassador to Turkey was shot dead by an assassin who told him: “We die in Aleppo, you die here.” The gunman was an off-duty policeman who opened fired at an art gallery in Ankara as Andrei Karlov was making a speech, then stood triumphantly over his body shouting revenge for Syria and Aleppo. Russia described this event as a ‘terrorist act’.
National Politics:
Photo credit: www.indianexpress.com
Demonetization:
The demonetisation of ?500 and ?1,000 banknotes was a policy enacted by the Government of India on 8 November 2016, ceasing the usage of these banknotes as legal tender in India from 9 November 2016. The announcement was made by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi in an unscheduled live televised address 8 November. In the announcement, Modi declared that use of all ?500 and ?1,000 banknotes of the Mahatma Gandhi Series would be invalid after midnight of that day, and announced the issuance of new ?500 and ?2,000 in exchange for the old banknotes. The government claimed that the demonetisation was an effort to stop counterfeiting of the current banknotes allegedly used for funding terrorism and to impose a crack down on black money in the country. However, in the days following the demonetisation, banks and ATMs across the country faced severe cash shortages with severe effects on a number of small businesses, agriculture, and transportation. People seeking to exchange their notes had to stand in lengthy queues, and several deaths were linked to the inconveniences caused due to the rush to exchange cash.
Resignation of Najeeb Jung:
Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung has submitted his resignation to the Centre, ending a nearly three-and-half- year-long eventful tenure. Jung did not issue a reason for his resignation, however it is said that Jung wanted to go back to his true passion for academia. Jung thanked Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal along with the people of Delhi for their continued support, however AAP claims that Jung is responsible for stalling ambitious projects, like setting up of Mohalla clinics across Delhi.
Demise of J.Jayalalithaa:
The esteemed Cheif Minister of Tamil Nadu, J. Jayalalithaa, fondly known as Amma, passed away on December 5th, 2016. She served Tamil Nadu for 14 years, between the years 1991 to 2016. She passed away due to her inability of recovering from a cardiac arrest, and her death was confirmed by Apollo Hospitals. She is succeeded by O. Panneerselvam from the AIADMK Party.
State Polls:
2016 saw the beginning of the State Elections which are to be held in 2017. In many of these states, Assembly Polls have already taken place and final voting is to be held in 2017. The states wherein elections will be taking place are West Bengal, Assam, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Kerala.
New Year Resolution has been a funny custom we’ve observed since childhood, but is strangely one of those few which haven’t been forced onto us as “tradition”.
But has it been any good to invest the mind into all those never accomplished Resolutions? Before venturing on to rant about it, let us peep into the origin of the custom that helps us realise our levels of procrastination!
Peeking into its history, we find that the “New Year Resolution” custom comes from the Babylonians who were believed to make promises to their Gods in hopes of earning good favour in the coming year. Quite akin to many of us, their resolutions were also centered around getting out of debt in the year ahead. Moreover; it was our very own friend, Julius Caesar who made January the first month of the year in honour of the Roman god of beginnings, Janus. The two traditions were gradually adopted by the people of different civilisations.
It was however after the Americans’ adoption of the custom that the world started to follow it blindly, just like every other American custom.
But hang on! What we need to ask ourselves is, “Do we really need a New Year Resolution, despite knowing the never materialising outcome of it?” Why is it necessary to burden the mind with yet another unachievable task, adding on to the long list of to-do’s, just because of our American counterparts’ decision to make a resolve each year? A New Year Resolution tells us to start afresh and take up one or more than one task of self improvement, which sounds like an amazing idea at the face of it. But is it really easy to disregard all that is already going on in life and resolve to figure out an all new issue on January first? We’re all caught up in one or the other issue at all times in our life, so why not solve those issues, close an old chapter and start off with a new resolution the other day! Every morrow brings to us an opportunity to close old chapters bothering our existence, and start off with a resolve to make life better. So why wait for the coming January to make it a happier existence?
Adding to the misery is the fact that these resolutions we’ve been making for years are forgotten merely after a month, making it another vain attempt of following the custom. There are, however; many who achieve their New Year Resolution goals; but sadly a very small fraction of all those who take it up in the beginning. Funnier it is, that the last years’ pending resolution of losing weight or quitting smoking becomes the current year’s, and that is how we keep procrastinating until we finally decide to do away with the idea.
It is time that we rethink following the custom that takes us on to a guilt trip or a level up in procrastination.
Saturday, the 17th of December 2016, Baha’i Temple Auditorium
Six months of assiduous preparations finally culminated into a grand show on the 17th of December 2016. The spiritually uplifting ambience of The Baha’i Temple of Worship became a spectator to the magnificent accounts of Reality beyond Conventions.
The day started early, with the assembling of all the volunteers at 8:00 am in the premises. The arrangements, including decorations and tenting which were started with a full swing, with the speakers and the attendees arriving at 9:30 am. The attendees were registered on the desk and handled their event kits. The speakers of the first session were Dr D.K. Hari, Hema Hari, Mithaq Kazimi and Onkar K. Khullar. They were greeted and were served with breakfast and tea.
The stage was occupied by the hosts at 10:15 am, announcing the instructions and thanking the sponsors. Ticketing partner: Explara, Hospitality Partner: Nearbuy, Education Partner: Career Launcher, Online media Partner: DU Beat; Promotional Partner TEDxKIIT University.
At 10:30 am, principal of Ramanujan College, Delhi University, Dr S.P. Aggarwal is called on stage to formally initiate the day. Next, the hosts elaborate the theme, ‘Reality beyond Conventions’ and an introductory TED video is played. At 10:44 am anchoring resumes and the first speaker Mithaq Kazimi is introduced. He is a media producer, filmmaker and co-founder of WION news channel. At 10:57 am, Mithaq ends his talk and Onkar K. Khullar is introduced. He is a social entrepreneur and founder of Impact India Partners. At 11:17 am, Onkar ends his talk and the anchors introduce next speakers, D.K. Hari and Hema Hari. They are historians and founders of Bharath Gyan. The first session ends at 11: 35 am, tea and snacks are announced the speakers were given the speaker kits.
At 12:15 pm, the second session resumes. The anchors introduce the first speaker Prof Dinesh Singh. He is a mathematician and former VC of University of Delhi and alumnus of acclaimed institutions like St. Stephen’s College and Imperial College London. At 12:35 pm Prof Dinesh Singh ends his talk and the anchors introduce Kamla Bhasin. She is a feminist activist and Founder of NGOs like JagoRi and Sangat. Kamla ma’am finishes her talk at and the anchors introduce Jazba Theatre Group with their founder and director Anurag Dass Mathur at 1:13 pm. At 1:35 pm the Speech and performance of Jazba Theatre Group ends. Anchors announced the playing of a customary TED Video. At 1:45 pm the video ends and the Lunch break is announced. The Lunch Break lasted till 3:10 pm and the speakers of the previous sessions received their kits.
At 3:10 pm, the third session resumes and the Dr Savita’s entry is announced. She is a professor and co-founder of the Centre for Studies of Traditions and Systems. At 3:12 pm, Dr Savita starts the talk. She ends her talk at 3:31 pm. At 3:32 pm, Introduction of Atika Dhandhia. She is a jewellery designer, Art of Living Instructor and image consultant. Atika Dhandhia ends her talk at 3:57 pm. The speakers next introduceTED Video. The video ends at 4:05 pm. The anchor thanks to the gathering: Thanks to Baha’i Temple auditorium, attendees, volunteers and sponsors stage slide mention. Ticketing partner: Explara, Hospitality Partner: Nearbuy, Education Partner: Career Launcher, Online media Partner: DU Beat; Promotional Partner TEDxKIIT University.
At 4:10 pm the last tea break of the day is announced and event ends successfully which reflected in the feedback received from the feedback.
Winter Breaks are those times where we lose almost all our productivity to our cozy warm bed. However, the guilt of not doing anything productive and lazying around does sink in at some point during this time. How about finding ways through which we can be unapologetically lazy and still be productive?
With hopes of helping you find your lost productivity even in the last leg of the Winter Break, here are some ways through which you can lay in bed all day, and be proud:
Reading
Very common and probably very boring to hear, reading is one amazingly easy way to stay productive. To keep yourself going with it, you need not necessarily read novels, anything, ranging from articles on some topic of interest to your Quora Digest would be perfect to keep you productive. The gains of reading may not be visible immediately, but it however, adds to one’s knowledge and eventually broadens the intellectual horizon of the reader.
Watching ”Good” Videos/Movies
Figuring out all what that falls under this category can be challenging whereas adhering to it can be even harder. There are some types of videos available online, that can keep you productive for quite some time during the day. For instance,Documentaries and Short Films. The internet has a plethora of documentaries and short films available on various issues to educate the viewers. Moreover, shows or movies of the Social Satire genre can be very entertaining as well as informative. In fact, all videos that educate and entertain may prove to keep you productive, but try not glueing yourself to them because, yes, they’d definitely make you lazier!
Not peeping into people’s Social Media Profiles
Social media “stalking”, as it is called, is one habit that must be stopped right away! Ironically, it is what almost all of us do for very long periods while browsing through the social media. But, in order to stay productive, not doing it is probably the first step we all must take in this direction. Social Media stalking reaps no positive results, instead, leads to a gradual negative change in behavior and actual waste of time.
Writing
We understanding how boring and/or cumbersome it may sound to many, but fret not! You aren’t supposed to write masterpieces while lazying around in bed. Just pick a pen and paper, or use your phone to write about anything, maybe your first thought about the covers you’re wearing, or what you wish to eat for dinner. Write, and put down your thoughts into words. Doing so even once in a while makes you think deeper and exercises the brain ,and the best part? Writing brings you closer to your thoughts and helps in articulating them better through spoken or written words.
Try one of these and tell your friends too, that lazying around does not always take you down a guilt trip, but can be productive too!
Anger and disgust spewed from some of the most high profile Twitter accounts in Hollywood after a three year old interview of Last Tango in Paris director, Bernardo Bertolucci re-circulated online.
In it, the Italian director admits to feeling guilty over his treatment of the then 19-year-old Maria Schneider while making his 1972 film, especially while filming “The Butter Scene”, where Schneider’s character Jeanne is lubricated with a stick of butter before Marlon Brando’s character, Paul, has sex with her without consent.
What’s most shocking is not the fact that two influential men of great power in Hollywood conveniently bullied a young actress who was desperately trying to carve a path for herself in the industry, but the fact that it took a director’s statement to spark outrage when Maria Schneider admitted that “I (she) felt humiliated and to be honest, I felt a little raped, both by Marlon and by Bertolucci. After the scene, Marlon didn’t console me or apologize. Thankfully, there was just one take,” she said soon after the film released.
To understand the reality of what goes on behind the scenes is absolutely devastating- it is unforgivable on any director or producer’s part to use deception, just because Bertolucci “ wanted her reaction as a girl, not as an actress.” Iconic film or not, non -consensual sex is a crime just the same. The fact is, ladies and gentlemen that an actor’s job is to act, to try and portray the situation as realistically as possible. This is exactly why Brando and Bertolucci have no excuse for what they’ve done- they picked Maria because they believed she fit the role best and their lack of faith in an actress’s ability is something that most male figures shared in the industry at that point in time.
It is an absolute shame to see such a critically acclaimed film reach such lows- after all Last Tango in Paris is considered to be one of the finest erotic films ever made- a genre less explored. Let’s hope that there are no more surprises in store for us- it will be truly heartbreaking to learn that little Gretl was forced to star in the Sound Of Music.
