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International Women’s Day is celebrated across nations to empower women and commemorate their struggles for attaining their current stature and recognition.

According to UN, Women’s Day was established to honour the movement for women’s rights and to build support for achieving universal suffrage for women. All throughout history, women have had to struggle for their basic and fundamental rights- the right to education, political representation, right over their bodies, birth control, all kinds of shaming and bullying, freedom to work and equal pay. Women in states like the USA, Europe, and Australia have achieved most of these rights but millions of women still struggle to get access to these basic rights.

Women have always been less represented in all fields but that did not deter them from achieving some of the most innovative and helpful breakthroughs in various spheres. A female scientist, Dorothy Hodgkin worked out the structure of insulin, penicillin and vitamin B12. Virologist Françoise Barré-Sinoussi identified HIV as the cause of AIDS. Biologist Gail Martin identified and demonstrated the potential of stem cells. All these women won Nobel Prizes for their discoveries. All these women have proved that this world would not become a better place by chaining women in the four walls of the house and leaving them only to raise kids.

Talking about our own University, it consists of numerous girls colleges. These girls’ colleges are a source of inspiration for the first years who take shelter in these institutions for the next three to four years. Each day is an adventure and a lesson. The young women in these colleges deal with all these struggles on a daily basis while girls of co-ed colleges fight for their spaces and representation in each event. The opportunities and freedom allow young women to develop their personalities and become strong individuals ready to take on the world.

Pinjra Tod has become this empowering feminist movement in our University that fights for equality for girl students. Since their inception, they have picked up the gauntlets, raised their voices and accomplished marvellous feats in making our institution more inclusive, equal and empowering.

The young women who have walked through the doors of our institution raised their voices against any sort of discrimination, harassment and/or abuse and strived to make it safer. Each year more girls take admission in our University, they look up to the legacy we leave behind and would do the same when they leave these walls of empowerment when we all make them feel safe, free, inclusive, and special.

 

Feature Image Credits: GenUN

Prachi Mehra

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Each one of us has encountered various stereotypes since childhood. It begins with pink is for girls, blue is for boys, and goes up to women work in the kitchen, men work outside. These stereotypes put people in a box and it’s necessary now, more than ever, to break these walls down.

Since time immemorial, gender based stereotypes have occupied primal importance especially when it comes to beauty. Forget putting makeup, taking care of your skin is also considered feminine and ‘girly’. When such hard lines have been drawn, it gets even tougher and important to break through and express yourself irrespective of the sex we were assigned at birth.

Being a ‘beautiful’ female has been resonated with having plump soft skin, a curvaceous hairless body, extensive knowledge of makeup, impractical outfits, wearing heels, and, so on. You must have come across incidents where a guy offered a woman his seat or a brother carried the shopping bags for his sister. When fragility is associated with being female, it becomes problematic. On the other hand, for a male, stereotypes range from having a muscular body, keen attraction towards girls, sports, cars, and bikes to showing no interest in shopping, and wearing the same prototype of an outfit regularly (a.k.a. t-shirt, jeans, and shoes). “Boys don’t cry”, “Man up”-are regular phrases used to motivate a gloomy boy. What becomes more perplexing is when the current generation continues to enforce and internalise these stereotypes.

In order to shatter these stereotypes, we need to be proactive. Firstly, we need to re-educated ourselves and stop associating femininity with girls and masculinity with boys. A person’s sex and their behaviour are independent of each other. For boys who want to try makeup, they can get start with a mascara and a tinted moisturiser, working their way upwards. For girls who are not comfortable with their long hair, can get them cut short, bit by bit. The idea is to embrace our femininity or masculinity in ways that makes us happy and we are comfortable with. While these are baby steps that one can take, they are equally important.

One of the biggest reasons we are afraid to experiment is we are afraid of getting a reaction. What will my friends say? What if they mock me? What will our neighbours think of me? What if someone laughs at me in the metro? These are some usual thoughts that might bother you but that shouldn’t stop you. After all, David Bowie, a gender-bending musician, wouldn’t have been the legend that he is, if he would have been bothered by the opinions of some meddling and annoying aunty in his neighbourhood. Life is short and it’s time you are unapologetically and beautifully you.

 

Feature Image Credits: Paul Windle

Varoon Tuteja
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It is time that the problematic and hyper-aggressive portrayal of what it means to be a man is effectively fought against. This narrative alienates and hurts people and society at large, irrespective of their gender and sexual orientation.

International Men’s Day is an occasion meant to raise awareness regarding the health of men and boys, improving gender relations, promoting gender equality, and highlighting male role models. A lot of us would wonder why we need one day to talk about the issues of men when every day of the year feels like Men’s Day. In 1966, James Brown recorded the song “This is a man’s world”, which talked about the contribution of men to modern society. The narrative in this song, one which reiterated the importance of men is still strong, more than 50 years after.

When we look at gender dynamics, men are applauded for their role in the development of modern society and the fact that women were never allowed to pursue similar activities is conveniently ignored. Sexism is a very real problem, with men at a ridiculous advantage over women, transgender and, non-binary people in terms of acceptance, freedom, and opportunities offered. The question that comes to mind is- why should a day be devoted to celebrating men when they are at an obvious advantage already? Here is why- because, as much as this planet is man’s world, the definition of what makes a man is very narrow. Heteronormative boundaries and a problematic glorification of “manliness” have hurt males just as much as it has hurt members of other genders. The likes of Don Draper and James Bond have across decades created a rigid definition of what it means to be a man. Popular culture glorifies and promotes toxic masculinity, and has increased conformity in behaviours such as misogyny, homophobia, and violence. One look at your television screen is enough to tell you how little boys from a young age are taught to objectify, disrespect, and mock anyone and everyone who isn’t a “manly man”.  Words and language like “sissy” and “no homo” promote the ideology that there is just one right way of being a man- by being a caveman-like, hyper-masculine, violent, emotionally unavailable individual with ridiculous sexual prowess who is at the top of the social hierarchy.  Take one look at the popular men on television and in films- characters like Barney Stinson, who for all his charm is a misogynistic womanizer who lies, cheats and plays by every possible trick for the sake of sexual activity. Charlie Sheen is another beloved television character who devoted his life to alcohol and objectifying women. These characters, these little jokes propagated in the name of comedy contribute to the formation of a social structure where the only men who are respected are the ones who engage in the aforementioned behaviour. Donald Trump cited his crass and vulgar interview of grabbing women by the genitalia as “locker-room” talk and a ridiculous number of his followers bought that lie, simply because his language fit into what their idea of locker room talk is.

Toxic masculinity is a deep problem that is never addressed enough. I have an acquaintance added on Facebook who responds to every joke his friends make on him on social media with a line that starts or ends with “your mom”. This is a classic case of toxic masculinity, where the only appropriate, “manly” way to respond to an insult is to bring down a woman. “Hyper-masculinity” means exaggeration of stereotypical male behaviour, such as the emphasis on physical strength, aggression, etc.  Glorification of hyper-masculinity undermines ever male who does not fit into its narrow definition.

This November 19th, we need to talk about such issues. I have seen innumerable body-positivity and well-being pages aimed at women and not one-tenth of such pages aimed at men. Toxic masculinity is so deep-rooted and powerful, that the idea that men need positive reminders, hope and encouragement is largely forgotten by most of us.  Transgender men, gay men, or men who do not fit into the narrow definition of masculinity are unfortunately marginalised. Their problems and issues aren’t talked about, their existence often ridiculed and mocked. Most of the posts that I have seen regarding men facing sexual assault too, or being victims in domestic relationships, are in response to women talking about their hardships and subjugation. The “men get harassed, stalked, raped too” statement is all too common, meant to undermine a woman, transgender or non-binary individual talking about a form of violence they have faced. It is time we remove the “too” from this statement. Instead of saying “men get assaulted too” when women talk about harassment; let’s start saying things like “men get harassed”, “men are stalked”, “men can be victims”, period. The problematic “too” at the end of these sentences, aimed to silence the voices of those trying to talk about their struggles needs to be discarded.  Conversations regarding male subjugation should not be treated as a method to silence the voices of those trying to talk about their problems. If male-rights activists wish to gain authenticity and respect, they need to move from their narrative of “XYZ happens to men too” and need to start talking about issues that affect men. This International Men’s Day and on all subsequent days to follow, may we be able to identify, target, and effectively dismantle toxic masculinity, all the while creating a wider definition of masculinity that is accepting of all men irrespective of their height, physical appearance, the amount of sexual activity they engage in, or how they choose to identify themselves amongst all the sexual orientations out there.

 

Feature Image Credits: Time For An Awakening

Kinjal Pandey

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The Women’s Development Cell (WDC) of Shivaji College, in its efforts to generate awareness about gender equality, organized a workshop entitled ‘Gender and Media: From Margins to Mainstream ‘ on September 19, 2017, in collaboration with Breakthrough and Alliance India. 
Ms. Simran Sheikh representing  Alliance India, a not-for-profit Indian organisation with expertise in a range of disciplines including HIV, sexual & reproductive health, human rights, resource mobilisation, and advocacy to name a few, enlightened the students with her words. She engrossed the audience in her interactive session, starting with a question – “Who am I?”
Pointing towards the society and their acceptance of the ‘other gender’, she said that they can call her ‘A woman with a Man’s voice’, and also said, “Just because I am wearing a sari does not mean I am a woman.” She continued with the idea that in their community, their identity is expressed by their claps or plating. “Meri pehchan tali hai,” she said. She pondered over the idea of this identity in a society. She also elaborated how culture,  traditions, family, and neighbours bind us in some specific roles, admitting “although it’s  not bad to follow them,” their imposition certainly becomes a problem. She reinforced the fact that one must not be judgmental on seeing another person’s appearance. Her community, she believes, is “visible yet invisible”. In the end, she concluded with a trio vision of “Inclusion, Humanity, and Justice”.
The other guests, Mr. Pavel Sagolsem and Ms. Priyanka Sinha from Breakthrough, enlightened the students about the role of media in gender discrimination in India. They explained how a non-profit organisation challenges the status quo and takes bold action for the dignity, equality, and justice of all. The interactive session also included a bunch of videos explaining the audience how advertisements can bring a change in the outlook of the society towards many orthodox norms. Ring the bell, Titan Raga, and many other ad campaigns which have been seen on television over the years, were shown. In this session, the speakers also took inputs from the audience about their thoughts on these videos, and how they felt about the ads. Few volunteers from the audience weredivided into groups and were asked to prepare an advertisement on gender equality. The volunteers took up the task with great enthusiasm and witnessed great work from young creative minds. The speakers ended their session with a hope thatwould help the young minds change to a path of equality and justice to all.
The interactive session brought a change in the vision of the students,inclining them to mull over the mainstream norms.
Image credits: Team WDC, Shivaji College
Team WDC, Shivaji College

Gender Equality Mela is one of the key annual events conducted by the Women’s Development Cell of Miranda House. It is a celebration of the will to survive and thrive. It is a part of the efforts at generating discussions and creating a space for saying what is often left unsaid and for including those who are often left behind in the ideas and plans of ‘development’. The Gender Equality Mela is a part of MH-WDC’s campaign with One Billion Rising (OBR).

This year’s Gender Equality Mela was based on celebrating feminist conversations towards equality, the central theme being ‘Gender and Work’. There was also the celebration of MH-WDC’s Coffee Table Book, ‘Azaad Labon ki Guftagu’ which strives to provide with snapshots of MH-WDC’s journey and their tireless efforts at ‘engaging with wanting to create a more equal and free world, a world where gender equality becomes a live reality for us’, as the book reads.

The 3-day event played host to numerous speakers and panelists like Suneeta Dhar (feminist activist, Jagori), Bulbal Das (legal feminist activist, All India Women’s Conference), Jyotsna Chatterjee and Padmini (Joint Women’s Programme). These speakers emphasised on the introduction to the history of the feminist movement. The topic of manual scavenging was taken up by Bezwada Wilson (National Convener of Safai Karamchari Andolan) and Bhasha Singh. The session on Child Rights and Child Sexual Abuse was taken up by Vaishnava (Bud Foundation), Veronica Xavier (Child Rights and You) and Natuve (dramatics society of Shaheed Bhagat Singh College). The round table discussion on Students in Politics consisted of speakers from Pinjra Tod and Ramjas students. An ‘unconference’ was also organised which placed emphasis on feminism through art, language and music.

On Day 2, the session on Gender and Intersectionality was taken up by Dr. Chandra Sagar and Kusum Ji (All India Network of Sex Workers) and Renuka Bhagat. The session on Trans Community and Work was taken up by Rudrani Chettri. A session on Women and Work through development framework was also conducted by Neetha N. (National Labour Institute). The interactive session on ‘Queering Workplaces’ along with Lafz 2.0, the open mic featured speakers from Nazariya and Delhi Queer Pride. Day 2 also showcased nukkad natak performances by children from SMS (Srijanatmak Manushi Sanstha), LSR dramatics society and Anukriti, the Hindi dramatics society of Miranda House.

On Day 3, the first session on Taking Feminist Conversation Forward was hosted by celebrated author and feminist Kamla Bhasin, wherein she presented her letter to patriarchy. The second session on Women and Media was conducted by Rakhee Bakshi (Women’s Feature Service), Shrey Ila Anasuya (Feminist and Freelance Journalist), Radha Rani (BBC) and Deepajana Pal (fiction writer). The session on Gender and Masculinity was taken up by Pavel (Breakthrough India), Ahmad Farz (CHSJ, Centre for Health and Social Justice) and Apurv Jain (worker on issues of gender and sexuality). The 3-day mela ended with a screening of the movie Hidden Figures.

 

Image Credits: Miranda House Women’s Development Cell

Joyee Bhattacharya

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While Ranveer Singh stands at the forefront of the cause, there are many and many more who are gradually becoming a part of the androgynous pop culture in India.

Androgyny was brought into the pop culture by the many likes of David Bowie, Prince, Grace Jones, Ruby Rose, Lady Gaga and more. Breaking a lot of gender stereotypes with their style and fashion, these celebrities have made ‘gender-bending’ a relevant term in the recent times.

Recently spotted at the Umang Police Show was Ranveer Singh, wearing kajal. When you live in a world where gender stereotypes are embedded in you from childhood, seeing a mainstream male actor rock something that “belongs” to the fairer sex is a rare sight. But it is not about the kajal. Ranveer Singh is usually seen sporting skirts, anarkali kurtas and nose rings and his bold statements are very subtly and slowly incorporating gender-fluid fashion in India.

And it is not just Ranveer Singh – Bollywood actor Arjun Kapoor wore red pumps for his movie Ki and Ka, and even though the movie failed to make an impression, it had good intentions to break the gender stereotypes. Make-up artist Elton J Fernandez, model Harnaam Kaur , are also key in shattering these labels – their statements say that guys can wear make-up and girls can have beards. And most importantly, that it is okay.

Pop culture in India is gradually becoming aware of the need to address the issues of gender stereotypes. Stereotypes are constantly being broken with the internet – web-series like Man’s World, for example, has been extremely instrumental in bringing the issue to the youth.

Gender fluidity is now becoming a part of street wear in India as well. The process is slow and careful, but it is happening. Men are now experimenting with make-up, jewellery, “girly” colours and women are donning tuxedos and buzz cuts. The definitions of femininity and masculinity are changing – men and women are leading parallel lives, and their fashion statements are also becoming evident of that.

Image Credits: buzzfeed.com

Anagha Rakta

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The Gender Studies Cell, St. Stephen’s College, conducted its two-day annual event, Sarfarosh, on the 28th and 29th of March, 2016. With the tag line, “Ae be-baak bol uthein hum, qayyar nahin, sarfarosh hain hum,” the event was a fitting conclusion to the GSC’s year-long endeavour towards dispelling taboos through interactions with activists and 1scholars, unearthing lived experiences in the process.

The event was kick-started by Prof. Mary E. John, Senior Fellow and Professor, Centre for Women’s Development Studies, with her talk on ‘A Silent Revolution? Gendered Intersectionalities in the University today.’ With statistics to back her arguments, Prof. John voiced the question of whether the numbers claiming higher rates of education for women today can be considered a silent revolution. The talk provided insights into the intersection of gender with other axes of discrimination and disadvantage. The instance of administrative responses to cases of harassment was used to highlight the vulnerability of young students, compounded by these intersectionalities. Her ideas provoked thought on the significance of economic policies in dealing with gender problems, for only 15% of women in India are currently engaged in paid work.

The lecture was followed by ‘Navigating Love and Sexuality,’ a workshop by Avani Parekh, founder of LoveDoctor, a platform for help and questions on sex, relationships and abuse, from experts. The interactive session brought to the fore ideas on love and sexuality from the students themselves, in an engaging manner.

The final day of the annual event began with a panel discussion on ‘Praxis Makes Perfect? Theory, Practice and Activism.’ Moderated by Ms. Urni Ganguly, the panel comprised Shambhawi Vikram, Subhashini Shriya, Gourab Ghosh and Dhiren Borisa. The panelists discussed the movements they are associated with, or have organised in their individual capacities, such as Pinjra Tod, Come See the Blood on My Skirt, Kiss of Love and Dhanak. The problems faced in the organisation of such campaigns, and their significance and impact was addressed. The discussion was followed by ‘Sonder,’ an inter-college spoken word event which saw the active participation of members of Parivartan, the Gender Forum at KMC.

“Sarfarosh is a culmination of the GSC’s efforts through the year-of discussing politics of the everyday, of working towards more accessible vocabularies of feminist and queer theory, of destablilising received knowledge-through workshops, poetry discussions etc. The biggest joy is seeing how members of the audience react to these spaces of discussion, truly recognising the transformative power of talking,” said Rene Sharanya Verma, President, Gender Studies Cell.

Abhinaya Harigovind

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The Gender Studies Cell (GSC), St.Stephen’s College, held its second discussion as part of ‘Taboo Diaries’ on ‘Sex, Sexuality and Shame’. The GSC hopes to bring the topics that most of us aren’t too comfortable discussing, out into the open for an informal and engaging discussion.

The panel of eight comprised entirely of students from the college, spread across batches and courses: Aayesha Varma, Prerna Subramanian, Paro Tomar, Suchismita Panda, Shirin Choudhary, Anshul Mukarji, Havisha Khurana and Harsha Sanyukta, presented their views on various taboos and misconceptions surrounding and not limited to, concepts of sexuality, safe sex, masturbation and sex education, after which they engaged in a discussion with the audience.
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The event was flagged off by Angha Gopal, with a slam poetry performance, on the issues of body image and coming to terms with it. As she encouraged us to ‘tip the scales over,’ she had the audience snapping their fingers in agreement.

The question of the body being the primary criteria, on which judgment of an individual is based, was raised. Further, the opinion that people who are overweight are not ‘victims’ or objects towards whom sympathy is directed was also expressed. The panelists put forth their own experiences with regard to their parents or schools shunning or in some cases accepting open discussions on sex and sexual practices. Sex sells and titillates as long as it is behind closed doors, but buying condoms to practice safe sex is still considered ’embarrassing’. This glaring public-private divide is essential to any discussion on sexual practices.

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The taboos surrounding porn and masturbation were discussed. It is common to be judged negatively for being a woman who masturbates, to the extent that most women are unaware that masturbation is natural and normal. The spaces that less privileged classes have to explore their sexuality and the problem of spaces to articulate same sex desire being inherently unsafe were other questions that were raised. Being scorned for enjoying casual sex, or ‘slut shaming’, is another taboo that exists on the same page. In order to dispel these misconceptions and taboos that surround sex and sexuality, sex education should be of supreme importance.

The most significant aspect of such a discussion is that lived experiences of students themselves are brought to the fore. While scholarly lectures or research papers may limit such discussions to a certain audience, a more informal affair ensures that maximum number of people are involved and interested in topics that they can relate to. Further, pertinent questions and issues are addressed with regard to topics that must be broached, else society considers these taboos too ‘shameful’ to be discussed outside of the privacy of our bedrooms.

Abhinaya Harigovind
[email protected]

Image Credits: Annalisa Mansukhani for DU Beat

Following the course of dialogue set by the Academic Congress on gender held earlier in the year, Lady Shri Ram College held a three-day conference  from 31st march- 2nd April 2014- Where Women Lead, in association with the Women in Public Service Project, a global non-governmental initiative aiming to build a generation of women leader who would take responsibility to further the betterment of their countries.

The conference was held at the India International Centre and concluded at the college, it was supported by Ford Foundation India and the US Embassy. The conference saw educationists, policy makers, activists and performers all come together and interact with the students and the staff. The brainchild of college Principal Dr. Meenakshi Gopinath and Dr. Rangita De Silva De Alwis, head of the  Global Women’s Leadership Initiative at the Wilson Center, the conference witnessed a total of 14 sessions as well as multiple film screenings and performances. The inaugural address was delivered by Nancy Powell, former US Ambassador to India, who spoke about how women’s issues were not just women’s issues but also those of family, economy, security and justice and that violence blocks the participation of women in society. Her message to the gathering was short and clear- we must do more.

The sessions on the opening day, focused on the importance of academic institutions in public leadership,which saw educationists from India, Sri Lanka and the United States talk about the role of women’s colleges. Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh later addressed the delegates on what constitutes the private and the public and how these notions are highly gender-ed. The later sessions on law and rights hosted by acclaimed experts like Kamala Bhasin and Vrinda Groverhow talked about how human rights and women’s rights mean the same things and the importance of rights being accessible . Each session had a dedicated time slot for a Youth Speak round where the floor was open to questions and comments from the students.

The second day saw a series of dialogues unfold around democracy and equal (or unequal) participation, representation of women in politics and policy making, i.e., how it changes when women are at the helm. Aruna Roy, founder of MKSS, spoke about the need to go beyond voting and engage in alternative politics in order for women to exercise their rights as citizens, she also spoke about the big disconnect between formal leadership and the grassroots. Planning Commission member .Meanwhile, in a parallel session, women’s representation in top decision making bodies was discussed by a group of eminent party members from different South Asian countries. The day ended with the screening of Uma Chakravarti’s Fragments of a Past followed by a discussion with the filmmaker. An installation titled ‘Women in Movement’ was also showcased at the India International Centre on the first two days of the conference.

On the third day, all the sessions was held at the college itself; the day opened with the screening of an excerpt from Aung San Suu Kyi’s address to the college in November 2012. This was followed by a discussion by the faculty members on what leadership means to women and what happens when questions of caste, class and sexuality are woven into pre-existing gender imbalances. At the end of the session, it was clear that a feminist interpretation of leadership means collective leadership and this was reiterated by Dr. Gopinath in her closing speech when she quoted from Heider’s Tao of Leadership,” like water, the leader is yielding. Because the leader does not push, the group does not resent or resist.” 

After the screening of the critically acclaimed film Girl Rising, the faculty and the students split into two different venues where each group, after over an hour of deliberation, arrived at action plans at various levels. These plans were read out and adopted as a declaration and a similar conference is soon hoped to be convened in order to implement the plan and track the progress made. The evening ended with moving closing comments and Kaleidoscope- a series of evoking recitations and performances. Through the conference, the college and especially its students hope to bring forward women’s leadership which, as put by Hillary Clinton, remains the unfinished business of the 21st century.

Photo Credits: Sahiba Chawdhary, DU Beat

Caucus, the group discussion forum at Hindu College organized Vaktavya – the 6th annual group discussion festival on 25-26th March. The festival was scheduled to have bilingual group discussions and baithaks.

 “Banning the burqua: Can women’s rights trump religion”

For Day 1, “Banning the burqua: Can women’s rights trump religion” was the discussed topic for conventional group discussion (GD). Discussion was moderated by Caucus members. Arushi Walecha was the Chairperson for the discussion and Pratishtha Mahajan sat as the Rapporteur. Each participant during the discussion was allowed to present his or her views and each opinion was recorded with the moderators. Mohammed Ziyad Ansari, a participant in the course of discussion remarked, “Islamic religious books not only talk about hijab (burqua) for women but for men as well. The purpose of hijab is not only covering one’s self, but also to show respect, lower the case and guard modesty.”

After 60 minutes of bilingual discussion, moderation and recording of views, the group came out with a common solution which mentioned that whether burqua or not, depends on the individuals choice. Ziyad also added that, “It should be the woman who should choose. We should keep in mind that Quran doesn’t impose burqua on anyone, it presents a choice.” The group also felt that, in the west there are many predetermined notions about these women who wear burquas. So someone who hasn’t experienced it or someone who doesn’t have full knowledge of the same has no right to condemn this system. Raja was adjudged the winner for this round of discussion.

“Is secularism irrelevant in the current Indian political context?”

Baithak at Vaktavya conducted a discussed on, “Is secularism irrelevant in the current Indian political context?” Baithak is an open discussion where no one moderates the discussion. Instead, a peer evaluation system is followed where the whole group evaluates other speakers and a best speaker is declared. This was also a bilingual discussion on what secularism is defined and understood as. The group also discussed about whether secularism as an issue is relevant in political discourse.

Baithak that was conducted for over one hour came out with the conclusion that despite the current political emphasis on development and economics, secularism still remains an agenda. Sandeep Singh, a baithak participant mentions, “Secularism stands on a proposition that religion and government state should be separated. But this agenda of secularism influences our perception of the political parties and candidates participating in the elections.” Sandeep was also declared the winner of this baithak session by his co-participants.

“Should schools teach – virginity is not a virtue”

On the second day, baithak‘s discussion revolved around the topic – “Should schools teach – virginity is not a virtue.” After 70 minute exercise of presenting their views, the group unanimously decided that virginity should be based on individuals perception and not as a universal virtue. Aishwarya Puri, the winner of this baithak round mentions, “Virginity should not be taught in schools, because when virginity is associated with a term like virtue, it becomes subjective.” A few members of the group also  presented their opinions on why this subject of virginity should be a part of school teachings.

 “Realism v/s Escapism : Does cinema need a purpose”

The last discussion at the festival had Nimisha Kawatra and Nishtia Khattar moderating the discussion as Chairperson and Rapporteur respectively. The topic, “Realism v/s Escapism : Does cinema need a purpose” had mixed views coming in from the participants. According to the members of the group, cinema works both ways. On one hand, it is a chute to propel one into another world for two hours and on the other, it can ground someone more firmly into the reality and enable him or her to see past the illusions of the society. Sandeep, who also bagged the first prize at baithak of secularism, was declared the winner for this discussion as well.

Vaktavya came to an end with screening of a short film called The Naturalist by Connor Hurley for all the Caucus members.