Why doesn’t Rahul Khanna fall in love with tomboy Anjali Sharma in the film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai ? And why does he, when she transforms into a demure, sari-clad woman?
These are the questions raised by two students of Brown University during the workshops they conduct in schools across the city.
Ria Vaidya and Shreena Thakore, both 19, co-founded the organisation ‘No Country for Women’. They believe that deep-rooted gender biases and stereotypes lead to sexual assault on women and needs to be tackled early.
Growing up in India, they were constantly told how girls should talk, dress and behave. “On the other hand, boys were told to behave like boys and that boys will always be boys. These phrases help boys get an excuse for violent behaviour. The society sanctions this,” says Ria.
Following the Delhi gang rape in 2012, Ria and Shreena tried to comprehend the deeper causes of sexual assault.
“We want to contextualise it. Rape is indeed a complex issue. After much thought, we realised that gender policing which begins at a young age was the trigger for several actions later. So, we decided to introduce children to these concepts so that they could critically evaluate social situations. We also want our workshops to equip children with skills that will enable them to critically watch all forms of visual media,” Ria says.
During the one-hour interactive workshops they present five examples of gender stereotyping that students can instantly connect with.
The duo have conducted workshops in five schools and have invitations from more, including IITs and IIMs.
“We plan to start a social art campaign where students can post short stories, quotes and posters about every day incidents of gender policing and stereotyping,” Shreena says.
