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I am Afraid I Can’t Do this

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Read what prevents or encourages the youth to say no to things that are too taxing, and not rewarding.

A huge part of education comprises of un-learning. Whatever baggage of preconceived notions we have accumulated without questioning, needs to stop occupying our headspace. That being said, saying “yes” to every opportunity does not, in fact, guarantee success. One life skill that people could bless themselves with is the subtle art of saying “no”.

We have always been told to take the opportunity that knocks at our door, and romanticised the fruits of mehnat (hard-work). This brings about a sense of salvation- something we see as a redemption for the burden of being human.

“Of course we all have to do things we don’t want to do; that is just part of life,” argues therapist, Alena Gerst. “But so many people agree to do things they do not even have to do. And sometimes these are big – I see people accepting promotions or jobs they don’t want, marrying people they feel unsure about, and having children before they are ready.”

Humans, as social beings, have this coercion of pleasing people around them- a sense of obligation towards people we love or want to impress. Falling short of someone’s expectations of you is as dangerous a thought as a real, actual threat sometimes. This excessive urge to be agreeable, in turn, lowers our overall productivity, and leads to an unending cycle of self-doubt.

Honouring oneself is crucial to one’s mental well-being. And if we take up jobs that make us foster resentment and regret, what we are doing is actually counterproductive.

We all have to learn the art of saying “no” sooner or later; it comes more naturally to some, others have to develop. For the ones who fall in the latter category, it is important to listen to what your body and mind are telling you. Do only what your body is capable of doing, and what your mind thinks is fruitful.

If you are presented with a particular task, which you most certainly don’t want to do, don’t delay declining it with phrases like “let me think about it”. It is okay for you to say “no” and not explain yourself at all. “I am afraid I can’t do this” is a perfect, complete sentence that does not require any supplementary arguments.  In declining work that is too taxing, we often tend to apologise profusely. That, in itself, is problematic because it feeds the idea of the salvation discussed earlier.

“When you start saying no to bad things, the “yes” compounds every day,” says James Altucher, author, The Power of No. Many people have realised this and don’t feel any shame in taking care of themselves; others, we hope, will soon join in!

Maumil Mehraj

[email protected]

Feature Image Credits: Tiny Buddha

 

 

 

 

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Beyond the Obvious of Delhi University Colleges

Glorifying the Grit: Kashmir in Popular Imagination

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Read how romanticising the nuanced conflict of Kashmir negates the trauma of its ground-reality.

There is a thing about pedestals- they act as an ideal way of distancing oneself from the responsibility of the reality. If one puts anything at a pedestal by glorifying it, and the sentiment acquires a ripple effect, then the glorified entity remains a far-away dream in popular imagination, because it is now an ideal one can seldom aspire to reach, or to change. In the mindset of countless individuals around the globe, the Kashmir Valley is on such a pedestal.

When we think of the ongoing conflict in Kashmir as twenty-first century young adults, not directly involved in its reality, it is almost always through a lens of Bollywood’s aesthetic frames. There is no denying the natural endowment of the Valley when it comes to its aesthetics, but this imagination often serves as a method to deny the human endowment of war and trauma in its past, present, and foreseeable future.

The mainstream media does not help change anything for us. Mainstream news outlets that reach the masses away from the site of conflict are often restricted by their own reasons- commercial, political, and populist- to present a Kashmir wronged by ‘the other’ (Pakistan, terrorists, violent militants) to us. What is activated in the Valley from the Indian end is either not revealed entirely, or is looked at as a retaliation on provocation. Movies exploit this narrative, supplying the masses often with an image of a tragically beautiful Kashmir Valley in violation by the enemy, while India is a saviour filled with good people and their great intentions. The narrative is of a damsel in distress.

As citizens of a time where the political scenario is largely based on turmoil and maligning the ‘other’, we take in the popular narratives and romanticise the tragedy further in our imagination. From the kind of literature we, as non-Kashmiris, read from and about the Valley, to the kind of films that are released about it, the utter grit of the conflict is almost always negated. Poetry and art are the media for numerous children of war to accept conflict as a part of their identity, and the richness of their verses and portrayals is often our entire worldview of a region in war with itself, and with the occupiers. The authority with which we then perpetrate the nuances of the issue on social media, and in our circles, reeks of a diaspora authority- distant, different, and sometimes indifferent to reality.

The Washington Post referred to 2018 as “the deadliest year in a decade in Kashmir” with over 400 reported deaths. In November 2018, a 20-month-old baby became the youngest victim of stone-pelting and lost her eyesight. Kashmir Valley is a region where violent conflicts can be listed by months. The grit of the violence is not a sonnet of beautiful sadness, but it is as real as a time-bomb that keeps ticking and killing at once. Samah Jabr, chair of the mental health unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Health, and many experts state that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a western concept as American soldiers return to normalcy after war, but the war never ends for those who are born in and then die in conflict-zones. For them, she explains, the fear of bombardment is not imaginary but justified; there’s no ‘post-trauma’.

We need to stop beautifying the horror in our imagination, and our expression, by becoming more than a distant onlooker. Films like Inshallah Football, No Fathers in Kashmir et al receive adult certification from CBFC, because of the authenticity of their conflict-portrayal. The least we can do as privileged citizens is seeking news, criticising cinema, and analysing our own understanding of the conflict in all its violent, political, traumatising manifestations, instead of remembering it merely as the land where pain breeds beauty for the outsider’s pleasure.

Feature Image Credits: NewsGram

Anushree Joshi

[email protected]

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Campus Central

Disguised Scamsters Terrorise DU Students

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Mutiple accounts of women dressed in green salwar-kameez, terrorising and exploiting students from across the university have surfaced online in the last couple of days.

The University of Delhi’s (DU) students have become subjects to various disguised scamsters soliciting money from students by terrorising them. A message was shared by a student from Ramjas College which started doing rounds on social media around 26th February, 2019. The message exposed a group of women dressed in green salwar-suit robbing money from the students in North Campus; all in the name of blessing the money with good fortune.

The incident shared by the Ramjas student happened on her way back to the metro station in front of Hansraj Hostel (Kamla Nagar). The student mentioned that first, a woman came to her, dressed as described above. The woman asked the student to give her a rupee or two as she waved a basket at her and claimed that the donated money was to be given at the dargah. The student was followed by the woman who consistently asked for money. After multiple denials by the student, the woman in green reportedly said that she would swear on her Baba that she had no intention to steal her (the student’s) money. The woman insisted that the student’s touching of her money to the basket would yield good fortune.

At this moment, two more women dressed similarly backed the student into a corner and forced her into taking out her money. Anxious and scared, by her own admission, the student took out a ?50 note which was snatched by the three women who pretended to pray for the student, and performed a ritual chant, as if they were blessing the student. Subsequently, the three women snatched a 500 note from her wallet and refused returning the money when asked to do so. Thankfully for the cornered student, another girl passing by observed the problem and came to assist her. However, the three women created an interruption by pushing the other girl away and took off rapidly from the scene. The victim who reported the event was shook after the three women took off.

However in the same message that has been shared by her, the student explores the intensity and terror of the situation. The same gang of scamsters were seen in the vicinity doing similar performances with other chosen vulnerable students. They were spotted around Kirori Mal College, and later near Sudama Tea Stall near Delhi School of Economics. Strangely enough, the attempt to follow the three women to thwart their exploitative targeting of students was reportedly met with obscene curses, ridiculing and insulting her future and family.

After the circulation of the aforementioned account, various students from the North Campus have narrated their own experiences with these women wearing green salwar-kameez. Most of the accounts follow a similar pattern wherein the student, mostly girls, are chosen and cornered by these scamsters who then take off with their money. The possibility of the robbing women carrying weapons has not been corroborated yet but it cannot be ruled out as well. Multiple accounts of North Campus students have exposed the deep concern that this explosive scamming mandates. No action has been taken against the identified thieving women.

However, the dargah women are not exclusive to the North Campus. Various incidents of their terror have been shared by students from Kamala Nehru College. Gargi and Rishita from Kamala Nehru College shared their experience with these women who chased them in Greater Kailash’s M-Block Market, asking for money. When denied, the women hurled abusive curses at the two unsuspecting girls. This rampant exploitation of students in the university at the hands of these women concerns us all. The fearless violations carried out by them in such active areas, in broad daylight, propose questions on the safety of students in the campus.

DU Beat appeals to everyone to stay safe and vigilant in campus until these disguised terror-inspiring women are tried legally.

Feature Image Credits: Akarsh Mathur for DU Beat

Kartik Chauhan

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Campus Central

Dr. Pratibha Jolly, Principal, Miranda House Retires

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Dr. Pratibha Jolly, the celebrated Principal of Miranda House, Delhi University, retired on 28th February, 2019. Let’s take a look at her contributions to the college in the past 14 years as the Principal.

Dr. Pratibha Jolly has been the Principal of Miranda House since 2005. She is an alumna of the college, having pursued B.Sc. Honours in Physics and M.Sc. from 1970- 1975. After gaining a Ph.D. in Chemical Physics from the University of Delhi (DU) in 1980, she went on to work in the areas of physics education research and curriculum development at the tertiary level. She was a faculty at Miranda House (1980-1988) before she moved to the Department of Physics and Astrophysics at DU as a UGC Research Scientist (1988-2002). She served as the Principal at Acharya Narendra Dev College (2002-2005) before moving back to Miranda House. Dr. Jolly, in her vibrant tenure, has brought several positive changes to the college.

One of her major contributions is making Miranda a disabled-friendly institution. Through her continuous efforts, Miranda House now has the Amba Dalmia centre within its library for the visually challenged students, and it also has computers that read out the text. There’s also an enabling unit called Lakshita. ‘Digital Vision’ is an app introduced in her tenure, installed in the phones of differently-abled students and is used at the time of admissions.  This app scans QR codes (which can be found outside every room) and gives directions/number of steps to be taken to reach a particular place. There are a number of ramps across the college. Braille books in the library and a Braille notice board are also available. There are scanners, e-book readers, voice recorders, and a Braille embosser that converts printed text to embossed Braille dots for easy reading. All these developments are feathers in Dr. Jolly’s cap for inclusive development of her college. Dr. Pratibha Jolly will surely be missed for all her good work at Miranda House.

Feature Image Credits: Mahamedha Nagar

Sakshi Arora

[email protected]

(With inputs from DU Beat and Miranda House)

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DUB Speak

The Educational Refugees of Kashmir

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As many in the country target a community in hatred, read the account of being marginalised and misunderstood in the country’s capital.

It is easy to protest when there are people to answer your slogans. While in Kashmir, I participated in some of the street protests. I protested when my friends got killed and blinded by the ‘non-lethal’ pellet guns. I knew the risks of participating in such gatherings; death, an injury, or a life full of misery. However, I had made peace with such possibilities under the belief that protesting was indispensable to a democracy. I had concluded that this equanimity was justified.

After shifting to Delhi four years ago, I found myself in a different situation. I came across people who knew little to nothing about the Kashmir conflict, and people who thought they knew everything. The latter was more difficult to deal with. Their primary source of knowledge about Kashmir was Bollywood movies and biased news media. I had two options- one, stay quiet and the other was to make them understand what the conflict is all about. I chose the latter.

As a Kashmiri studying in a premier Indian university, I have witnessed the cognitive dissonance of the supposedly intellectual lot of the country. Being a student of journalism, I cannot run away from these discussions. But it has been a daunting struggle to balance my safety and will to speak the truth. I can recall an event of my early days at college when a police officer was baffled to see Urdu on my Aadhar card. To quench his astonishing curiosity, I amicably mentioned that this is how Aadhar cards are in Kashmir. However, I had amplified his suspicion. “Kashmir se hai, phir toh acche se bag check karva” is what he said. Ignorance offers complete impunity to the perpetrators of intolerance.

Repeated shutdowns and curfews forced me to migrate. Delhi was not my first choice. However, I couldn’t get my passport on time because of the ‘thorough’ and slow verification process that only Kashmiris undergo. The conflict followed me to Delhi. I realised that no matter how quiet or non-opinionated I become, I will be attacked for who I am. My survival is a protest in itself. I and various Kashmiri students like me are the educational refugees who have made a decision to leave their homes for an education. Many Kashmiri students, in the past, have been charged with sedition for unjustified reasons. As Kashmiris, our each move is scrutinised, and each action is seen as for or against the state. We brave numerous odds to get an education but then it is our comrades back home who face the worst.

The recent attack in Pulwama unleashed the bigoted ‘reactionary violence’ on our community. A wave of suspensions and xenophobic attacks against Kashmiri students followed. Kashmiris like me who live in various Indian states for a decent education are being attacked on the pretext of supporting the militants in Kashmir. There have been repeated calls for violence against Kashmiris on social media and no action has been taken against the culprits. As a student who has been bearing the brunt of this conflict and the hate that it accompanies, I want peace more than anyone else does but this ‘blood for blood’ attitude will always result in more violence. We must not let this hate consume more blood.

In the end, we are just normal students with our own dreams to achieve. But we cannot afford to let our guard down at a time when our identity and our rights are being trampled upon. A life of normalcy is a distant dream for us but hope for a better future is what keeps us going.

“Hope is a weapon. Survival is victory.” –Dunkirk

Feature Image Courtesy: Kashmir Reader

Maknoon Wani

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DUB Speak

My Name is Fascism: I am Not a Light Term

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We use it like a two-rupee ball-point pen. Read on to learn what it actually means to be a ‘fascist’ in yesterday, today, and the times to follow.

It is a Saturday morning, and you have the liberty of not worrying about the 8 a.m. commute. Even before fully opening both your eyes, you open your cell phone to find memes, pieces of news, and social media posts with words like ‘fascism’ muddled casually in between, all in caps. Like a good 2018 internet-accessing influenced mind, you provide traction to the aforementioned and add your stamp of approval to the opinions.

This is not to say that the regimes or individuals being labelled fascist are not so. But it is important to understand where the label has its roots, how it has grown, and what its modern version essentially looks like. Especially in tumultuous times like ours, where the morning tweets have the leader of the free world making racist statements on international forums, with humans being lynched over cows, and the student politics has candidates wanting to protect the university from the LGBTQ community in lieu of the Section-377 verdict.

Mussolini used the word ‘fascism’ for the first time in 1919 and it comes from the Italian word ‘fascio’, which translates to a militant brotherhood. The play of the term has shifted considerably over time, but it is not an uncomplicated process to apply one fitting definition for the term. The one thing that is common to all beliefs about fascism is that it rests on the creation and the cultivation of an almost-alternate reality conceived from lies. So, a person in power, or without it, may try to convince you that apples are actually oranges, and provide you fallacious reasons that start feeding off a convenient majority’s belief system, then that is an apt understanding of fascism’s ideals.

The ideals of fascism have one or, usually, multiple goals out of these- anti-liberal, anti-socialist, violently exclusionary, expansionist nationalist. Robert Paxton at Columbia University is considered the father of fascism studies, and his definition for the aforementioned agendas of fascism excludes one significant sentiment of modern-day fascism, which is, the dynamic of undisputed power and the retention of it. To do so, the practice of fascism borrows the techniques of all the ideologies it is theoretically against. For example, it doesn’t emphasise on class conflict like the socialists do, but it gives preference (quite a lot of it) to racial and, by extension, national interests.

The ‘national interest’ picture that your typical fascist paints require the creation of an embellished idea of a ‘glorious past’. They romanticise the idea of a gone time of prosperity and joy for a nation so well it may put your epical bards to shame. Since it has beloved sentiments for one race or nation on an extreme end of a wide spectrum, like our good friends in the right-wing politics do today, fascism ideals require a manipulative vision of victimisation, resulting in superiority complexes. It requires one race, for example, the whites in 19th-century America, to feel wronged, threatened, superior and/or victimised, through a widespread use of disfigured realities. Our good friends in the Ku Klux Klan represented fascism quite well, before it became a real term in the 20th-century.

The modern world views fascism as the politics of intolerance and authoritarianism with a dollop of conservativism to spice things up, but it is significant to understand that the fascist finds their audience in a malleable mindset. Like all appalling notions that toxify democracy at its roots, fascism in politics today is skillfully perpetrated by establishing and then playing on power asymmetry in a diverse country.

As individuals who are on the internet, bombarded by a constant flow of information and (mis)representation of serious ideals, throwing around terms like ‘fascism’ must frighten us. It must frighten us because it is a callous wrong on our parts to negate the struggles of millions who lived through the worst of fascism, if we are wrong. If we are right, it must frighten us to only talk about it in confined, unreactive spaces when it is already in our homes, ready to burn the truth down.

 

Feature Image Credits: Slate

Anushree Joshi
[email protected]

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DUB News

Tempest 2019: Safety Concerns and Chaos

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The fest season has begun and so have the stories of chaos, harassment, and safety issues at these prestigious cultural festivals. Let’s see what went down at Tempest 2019.

Tempest 2019, the three-day Annual Cultural Festival of Miranda House took place from 14th to 16th February 2019. Reports of chaos, security breach, rape threats, and harassment arose on Day 2 and Day 3 of the fest.

On 15th February, a message from the Women’s Development Cell (WDC) was circulated for the girls to be safe as allegedly, some members of the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) had barged into the college campus, and were acting very violently and threatening people with rape threats. An anonymous source from the WDC security team shared her experience, stating that on the same day she noticed something weird going on around the entrance to the barricaded women’s area. When she went to investigate, she saw a few men who were trying to intimidate volunteers into letting them enter. When she asked them to leave, they retorted, saying, “Aapko pata hai hum kaun hain? Humare saath Shakti Singh hai.” (Do you know who we are? Shakti Singh, the President, DUSU, is with us.)

When these people were blocked and not allowed to enter, they retreated but only with threats like “we’ll come back soon- just wait and watch” and “aaj 20 log laaye hai, kal 500 laayenge” (Today we have brought 20 people, tomorrow we’ll bring 500). She also added- “This kind of hooliganism has increased in the campus. There were men from Hindu College who had infiltrated the crowd, asking about the people who had taken part in the V-Tree protest the previous day.”

Anoushka Sharma, a second-year student from Delhi School of Journalism and a Copy-editor at DU Beat, also shared her horror story from Day 3 at Tempest. She stated that while entering the college on the third day of the fest, she was trying to show her media pass at the entrance to enter when a guy pushed her and said in a very rude tone- “Madam ji, kya kar rahi hain?” (Madam, what are you doing?). At first, she ignored but he was persistent and kept on insisting. When she told him about the media passes, he again said in a harsh tone- “Tameez nahi hai baat karne ki?” (Don’t you have any manners?). Seconds later, the guards opened the door and at that moment people started touching and groping her. She quoted, “The lady security guard had to hold me since I almost fell on the ground, and she told me to go inside through the lawns since there was less crowd there.”

Talking about the ruckus created at the gates, the Head of Security from Miranda House’s WDC told DU Beat that due to the crowd build-up at the gate, the Principal had to open the gate when 50 to 100 unidentified individuals without passes barged inside the college. She also added that men came up to her, and to the Vice-President of the Student Union to threaten them by quoting their support from DUSU. When they were refused entry, they said, “Agli baar toh fest hi nahin hoga.” (We won’t let the fest happen next time.” She added- “There was a sense of fear in the environment and the girls were uncomfortable by the presence of such people.”

When DU Beat contacted the Vice-President, she denied the story, saying that she personally didn’t hear any comments; however, due to the rush outside the gates, she talked to Shakti Singh who said that none of his people were involved in any such threats and misbehaviour. She also stated, “The passes said entry till 2 P.M. and people didn’t follow that which created more ruckus but actions were taken and things went smoothly later.”

These incidents are examples which show unsafe environment at fests. Even in a fest regulated with passes, unidentified crowd entered in mobs through the front gates and created a ruckus, not only threatening the attendees but also the organisers and volunteers. These prestigious annual cultural fests are the platform of growth and inclusivity which have now unfortunately become spaces for assault and harassment.

Feature Image Credits: Namrata Randhawa

Sakshi Arora

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Arts & Culture

Pornography: Problems, Pleasures, and Perspectives

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From deodorants, chocolates, to mango drinks, anything and everything can turn into a sexual innuendo when it comes to commercialisation of sex.

They say that the only constant is change, but the one fact about business that has not changed is this: sex sells, and it sells large and fast. For the student population, pornography has a multi-layered significance. In terms of education, pornography provides a plethora of possibilities for research and dialogue. Its feminist understanding, religious connotations, psychological significances, political debates, and discourses from across disciplines are unending. To young individuals, porn supplies an entire spectrum of entertainment.

Criticism of pornography has been heavy, but sometimes misguided. Shaurya Singh Thapa, a second-year History student at Hindu College, offers an insight into the seldom discussed diversity presented in the porn industry, “We talk about diversity these days, and surprisingly, porn has a lot of representation (in terms of sexualities, body sizes, races, etc) and I appreciate that. It might be capitalistic in nature to cater to sexualities and preferences, but if it is not making your relationship abusive or making you addicted, it is a source of pleasure, and I think that is its positive side.”

However, the other side of the argument regarding porn may question the kind of representation diversity truly derives from porn. Feminist scholar, Ann Garry, analysed why sexual objectification of particular groups may be harmfully related to the loss of respect, for the entire class. She writes, “Losing respect for men as a class (men with power, typically Anglo men) is more difficult than losing respect for women or ethnic minorities as a class.”

One may even be of the belief that like all art, porn should get creative liberties. Its function, after all, is to stimulate one’s sexual desires based on their personal preferences, so why must it be brought to determine the moral fabric of its society? However, the political, legal, and hence universal interests in pornography make it impossible to be dismissive of the psychology and sexual morality porn targets. The influence of porn, like all art, is real but it is more threatening in its reality because online porn is visual, and that increases its reach massively.

The influence of porn cannot be dismissed, and its connotations ignored, because sex as an act is most often linked with harm, or at least negatively, in the society. Thus, when one watches women being slut-shamed, ethnicities being dehumanised through stereotyping, and resistance being the doorway to pleasure, it opens the psychological possibility of living those scenarios.
In Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, Bundy admits to having been “without question, without exception, deeply influenced and consumed by addiction to pornography”. As a psychopath serial killer and rapist, Bundy’s intents may not be trusted at face value, but it only adds value to a pattern of men pointing towards pornography as an enabler for their violent tendencies. As a concept, pornography does not intend violent influences, but a large chunk of porn shows resistance as foreplay.

Besides, with the unrealistic imagery of sex and its pleasures porn acts as a blow to self-esteem and causes disappointment in its practices.

Despite these criticisms, we shouldn’t degrade porn as whole. The narrative that needs to be set in non-derogatory form of porn is of sex being a healthy fulfillment of mutual desires between individuals who want it. The narrative needs change, because misrepresentation of communities and desires is the common phenomenon, and sex does not have to sell on it.

Featured Image credits- Pixabay
Featured image caption- Sex is a normal occurrence in real life but it’s to be understood that porn isn’t a representation of real life.

Anushree Joshi
[email protected]

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Arts & Culture

PARASHARA Closes Day-1 of Tempest 2019

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Here is a recap of Day 1 at Tempest 2019, the annual cultural festival of Miranda House.

Tempest 2019- the Annual Cultural Fest of Miranda House- University of Delhi kick-started on 14th February 2019. There were a plethora of events scheduled by the college but most of them got delayed due to unfavourable weather conditions. Nevertheless, the events ran smoothly and the first day of Tempest turned out to be a fulfilling and vibrant experience for the attendees.

The Annual Rachita Das Gupta Quiz was organized by the Quiz Society of Miranda House. They conducted three quizzes on Day 1. The Open General Quiz saw participation of 30 teams with 2 members in each team. Mukund and Dhruv bagged the first position, while Rorik and Rohan came second, and Basab and Amlan stood third. Eco Biz Filler witnessed Kirti and Pragati win the competition. In the Open India Quiz, Ashish and Abhishek Paliwal came first while the duos of Jayant and Amlan, and Ankur and Kartik Puri stood second and third, respectively.

Vaatavaran, the Eco Club of Miranda House organised Enviro Quiz, a short-film-based quiz. It saw participation from 20 teams from across different colleges. The first prize was awarded to Poornima and Yash, while Karishma and Garima, and Pragati and Niharika bagged the second and third prizes, respectively.

E-Cell, Miranda House, organised three Inter-College events at Tempest 2019. Combination- an event related to geographical locations of companies, saw participation of 20 teams with two students in each team. Addictive- a marketing competition of pitching products in the style of Bollywood, was won by Ashok, while Pinku came second. Boss Hunt- a Treasure Hunt had 35 teams compete, where Aditya Sah came first, while Neeruganti Purnima came second.

11 Dance Societies from across different colleges, which qualified the online preliminaries, performed at Burlesque, the Western Dance Competition, organised by Tanz, the Western Dance Society of Miranda House. The event was judged by Mrs. Sameeksha and Mr. Nitin Theo Kerketta. Enliven (Western dance society of Gargi) won the competition, while Crunk (Western dance society of Sri Aurobindo) came second.

The next event was the Hindi Debating Competition where the students battled their wits on the topic- “Sadan ke math mein loktantra maatr ek saashan pranali nahi, jeevan mulyo ka srot hai (In the opinion of the House, democracy is not only a regime conduct, but it is the source of life values).” It was judged internally by teachers- Mrs. Kusuma Krishna Subha and Mrs. Meeta Kumari. Smriti from Lady Shri Ram College was awarded the title of Best Speaker in favour of the motion while Happy from Ramjas College was awarded as Best Speaker in opposition.

Amid the melody of raag Darbari and Yaman, Sangam- the Indian Classical Music Competition- organised by Geetanjali, the Indian Music Society of Miranda House saw various performances that had the audiences captivated. With 14 participants in the Duet Singing Competition and 13 teams representing their colleges in the Choir Singing Competition, the event was a huge success. The Duet Singing Competition concluded with SGTB Khalsa College’s Sukriti and Saksham bagging the second prize, with the winner’s title being claimed by Hansraj College’s Pranava and Ram.

Adwitiya, the Fine Arts’ Society, in a stunning display of powerful art, transformed SAC to an exquisite art gallery. From portraits to abstract brushstrokes, all the artwork presented had a story to tell. An art-piece labeled ‘Nirvana’ captured the modern world in a representative manner. A symbolic display promised and delivered aesthetic pleasure.

The day concluded with the performance by PARASHARA- a popular Delhi-based progressive band, with an idea conceived and brought to action in the mountains. The audiences swiveled to the beats as they played their melodies, revolving around the realities of life, with an interesting modern touch to it. This wraps up the Day 1 of the fest and all the festivities stuck true to the theme of the fest: “Future of Fun”.

Image credits: Mahi Panchal for DU Beat

 

Sakshi Arora

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Shaurya Thapa

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Kartik Chauhan

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Shivani Dadhwal

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Hindu College

Straight from the Horse’s Mouth: Hinduites on the V-Tree Pooja

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The tradition of the ‘Virgin Tree pooja’ at Hindu College, wherein students pray in front of a tree on Valentine’s Day with the hope of losing their virginity, is viewed with diverse and opposing perspectives.

“I’m just young, rich, and tasteless,” says rapper Pusha T in the song ‘Runaway’. It might be an apt slogan for the tradition of the Virgin Tree (V-Tree) pooja at Hindu College. “Young” because maybe we’re the youth desperate to get laid; but also “tasteless” because maybe we recognise the problems with the tradition and go on regardless. “Rich” is slightly irrelevant here.

The tradition, which takes place at Valentine’s every year sees students worshipping the V-Tree. A female celebrity is chosen as the ‘Damdami Mai’ and the Mr. Fresher of the boys’ hostel, dressed as the pandit, does the pooja. Recently, the same has begun for the girls’ hostel also, wherein a ‘Love Guru’ is worshipped by the Ms. Fresher. Water filled condoms are hung on the tree, an aarti is sung, the water is showered on the crowd and a Holi-like celebration follows. Apparently, thou shall loseth thy V-card should thou showereth in the condometh watereth. Hindu 6:9, perhaps? Students view the pooja in a variety of ways. Defenders say that the motive is spreading awareness about safe sex. Others say that it’s patriarchal, misogynist, and excludes many. Yet others fall somewhere in between. “(The pooja) serves the purpose of spreading sexual awareness. It tries to do away with the taboo associated with sex,” says a second-year History Honours student. This was reiterated by Shubham Yadav, the Girls Students’ Welfare Minister. She said that while posters about AIDS awareness are also put up, the aarti is very demeaning.

This reasoning isn’t convincing to many.
Kareema Barry, a second-year English Honours student says that the inclusion of the male celebrity was only “tokenistic.” “What about transgenders? Aren’t we neglecting them? The solution is not to put their picture but to remove all of them,” says Sakshi Priya, Vice President of the college’s Women’s Development Cell while proposing a discussion on safe sex instead. Parakram Chauhan, a Philosophy Honours fresher comments on the “toxicity” behind the the pooja in terms of “seeing getting laid as some sort of prize or blessing.”

What are the freshers expecting?
One such expectation is to see a proper way of disposing of condoms, according to Mrinalinee Sharma of the History department. Khushi Gupta of the same department says “I want to see how they hang condoms after filling them with water, I’m very excited.” Parakram says he’s expecting “nothing at all.” However, a large chunk of them seems to be unaware of what the pooja is. Various students have protested against the tradition and some tell us that the crowds had declined last year. While Pinjra Tod’s article on the subject, which condemns the pooja as a contributor to “rape culture — which slut shames women who assert their sexuality,” is a bit overblown, not even the defenders deny that it could be made more inclusive and less demeaning.

Whether it’s a silly tradition or a serious issue, and whether it needs amendment or abolition, is for us to decide. We must ask if we’re just being tasteless, or something much more serious than that.

Image Credits: DU Beat

Prateek Pankaj
[email protected]

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