Voices
A Letter To My 16-Year-Old Self
You see, you are being pushed and pulled in all directions because people around you, whether family, friends or the larger society, expect you to behave in a particular fashion and stick to existing norms. However, your inner voice is telling you to challenge these norms and follow your own path.
By ElsaMarie D'Silva
January 3, 2023
Extra Large
“Large will not fit you.” / She is scoping me, up and down, eyes / Flicking fast and darting away…“Try extra-large instead.”
By Damini Kulkarni
January 3, 2023
A Space of Belonging
My sexuality had to somehow find people and a space to belong, just as my collaborators and friends needed something of that sort. We found this together in part with Matai Society.
By Kumam Davidson Singh
October 17, 2022
The many hues of connections
Connection, to my mind, is one of those profoundly entrenched concepts manifesting itself throughout our lives. It is difficult to let go of.
By Adsa Fatima
October 17, 2022
Where do we begin?
The connection between mental and emotional wellbeing and stigmatised identities is perhaps most easily understood and therefore a good entry…
By Shikha Aleya
September 19, 2022
When the Game is Set Against You, Why Play By The Rules?
“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” — J. Krishnamurti Sexuality for…
By Simran Kewlani and Vasudha Ramani
September 19, 2022
The Chronicles of the Changing Room: Reclaiming the Cubicle of Doom
I pride myself on being a fast learner. Yet it took me an embarrassingly long time to realise that shopping,…
By Sanskriti Bhardwaj
September 19, 2022
Obedience, the Greater Good and Self-Exploration
I distinctly remember an adult male member of my extended family saying, “Cover up your chest with a dupatta. You…
By Taniya Mondal
September 1, 2022
Nightmares of Being Chased by an Angry Mob
My foray of offering support in both the fields of sexual wellness and mental health was unplanned to say the…
By Pooja Priyamvada
September 1, 2022
Queer mental health and therapy
In 2019, I was diagnosed with a chronic mental illness. “What is recovery and how do I find it?” was…
By Anuckriti Garg
September 1, 2022
High Heels and Loose-fitting Clothes: Movement Unfettered
As I reached puberty, well-meaning family members said that I should start being more ladylike; I believe that this is…
By Taniya Mondal
Shouldn’t The World Be Big Enough?
We live in a world where resilience is celebrated and given priority over attempting to resolve factors that force one to be resilient. Campuses shouldn’t aim to merely be inclusive of diverse individuals – they must strive to not only affirm them but also celebrate them.
By Mythili Menon
April 18, 2022
Public Sex and the Police in Urban Spaces
While sex workers face repeated harassment by the police, many young couples face threats in a one-off incident if the police finds them with their partner/lover. They may face police surveillance of expressions of intimacy and affection in public.
By Shruti Arora
April 1, 2022
The Gendered Muscle in Gym Spaces
I can recall my experiences in the washrooms of different gyms that I have been a member of. A men’s washroom is an interesting place in terms of how sexuality manifests itself in its various aspects. It was not unusual to see men of various kinds with strange energies in these washrooms.
By Shiva Chauhan
April 1, 2022
The Construction of Women as Spaces
This article explores how women are constructed as a ‘space’ manufactured by men to seek comfort, but void of having any active agency or participation in that space itself. I seek to bring this out in this article by drawing a parallel between the nineteenth century ‘Bharat Mata’ (Mother India) and the depiction of the twenty-first century ‘heroine’ in Bollywood movies.
By Tanvi Chattoraj
April 1, 2022