Misogyny

Walks, Braids, Miranda, and Memories
grey concrete surface with patterns of swirls

This was the time we were growing up, learning new things, reading new books and discovering something new almost every day, and this all-women space provided an opportunity to do that without requiring any pretence or catering to the male gaze.

By Ambica Naithani
November 15, 2022
Walks, Braids, Miranda, and Memories
And quietly flow thoughts on being and not being…
An illustration of the interssecting outlines and silhouettes of male and female figures in pastel colors.

In the uncertainty and volatility of the pandemic, Pramada Menon examines what has changed for herself, for the world, and for the various attributes of the workplace – mentorship, conversations, power, and purpose, among others.

By Pramada Menon
December 15, 2021
And quietly flow thoughts on being and not being…
Invisible Women
A poster of the film 'North Country'. On the poster: in the middle, Charlize Theron's face and shoulders. She is wearing a yellow bandana and a grey-beige t-shirt. She is looking at the camera, wide-eyed. Behind her is a crowd of men, a bit transparent. The lettering under her is in white, saying NORTH COUNTRY. Above her, the lettering says, 'ALL SHE WANTED WAS TO MAKE A LIVING, INSTEAD SHE MADE HISTORY' and underneath the title of the film are details about its cast and production.

I recently watched North Country on Netflix, a movie based on a true story of a woman’s fight for equality at the workplace. It is based on the case, Jenson vs Eveleth Mines, in the United States in which Lois Jenson, fought for the right to work as a miner, and the right to work free of sexual harassment. She won the landmark 1984 lawsuit, which was the first class-action lawsuit on sexual harassment at the workplace in the United States and resulted in companies/organisations having to introduce sexual harassment policies at the workplace.

By Elsa Marie D'Silva
May 15, 2021
Invisible Women
Circle of Trust
Poster of the Netflix series ‘The Bold Type’ Three girls can be seen standing confidently. On top of the poster, the tile ‘Bold Type is written in purple colour

None of these characters is perfect but in their imperfections we can learn more about body positivity, gender sensitivity, privilege, consent, unconscious and implicit bias, sexuality, masculinity, their intersections with class, religion, race, age, and more.

By Elsa Marie D'Silva
April 5, 2021
Circle of Trust
The ‘Aunty’ Body And All That Follows
A photograph of a pen-and-paper illustration of two women, depicted as stereotypical ‘Auntys’ in the Indian context, talking to each other.

The issue with the ‘Aunty’ body arises from a deeply misogynistic and dehumanising understanding of women. In this imagination the woman, whom the world now addresses as ‘Aunty’, has basically served her purpose of marriage and child bearing, and is hence rendered useless.

By Feminism in India
March 15, 2021
The ‘Aunty’ Body And All That Follows
Editorial: Femininities and Sexuality
A close-up photograph of a dandelion with dew. The dewdrops are differently coloured in the light.

Are certain forms of femininities denigrated more than others? Not just by misogynists but also by feminists? Is there a particular way of manifesting an ‘appropriate’ femininity, one that is just right, and is not ‘too girly’ or ‘too tomboyish’?

By TARSHI
December 15, 2020
Editorial: Femininities and Sexuality
A ‘girly’ feminist
Two dandelion flowers in a glass vase on a pink background.

Desiring motherhood meant veering into a more ‘girly’ territory, a notion that I had simultaneously been fighting and trying to embrace since childhood. I had understood that to be a feminist I had to be independent, be wary of men, dislike families and relationships.

By Anubha Sarkar
December 1, 2020
A ‘girly’ feminist
Biscuit tin
On a pink background, a blue gift-wrapped box with a bow

I keep on hold the colours and prints to wrap you in gentle delicate flowers or little cartoon lions and boys with fists that say Bam and Super / until I know what lies between your legs the cigar or the smile of consolation if you’re the first

By Shikha Aleya
December 1, 2020
Biscuit tin
Churails: The Revolution Within Us All
A poster of the mini-series Churails. Two women can be seen sitting in a line. The first woman has a gun in her hands and the woman above her has a flask and hockey stick.

Their inimitable personalities showcase their varied conceptions of insaaf (justice), enriching and intensifying the plot and, at the same time, reaffirming their solidarity and strengthening their unity.

By Nupur Paliwal and Saloni Mishra
December 1, 2020
Churails: The Revolution Within Us All
Sweet Sixteen
An image of a half cut pear resembling the shape of a vagina. There are seeds around it.

At sixteen, the senior boy I loved, touched me down there and said, this is what boyfriends do, this is what love feels like – uncomfortable.

By Tapaswinee
December 1, 2020
Sweet Sixteen
Brushstrokes: 5 Fantastic Ways to Engage in Feminist Hookup Culture
Film poster of ‘Someone Great’

While navigating hook-up culture, we may exercise our agency to express our sexuality but at the same time, may face risks to our safety and bodily integrity as well as obstacles engendered by misogyny, rape culture, heteronormativity, and double standards.

By Curated Content
October 5, 2020
Brushstrokes: 5 Fantastic Ways to Engage in Feminist Hookup Culture
Brushstrokes:The Lurid Covers of 20th-Century Pulp Fiction
picture of a pulp fiction novel cover

Considering how sexuality was a running (and selling) theme in pulp fiction stories, and female sexuality was employed as a means to titillate and attract readers, the covers often reflected this.

By Curated Content
March 2, 2020
Brushstrokes:The Lurid Covers of 20th-Century Pulp Fiction
For I Am A Woman
silhouette of a woman

For I was a woman / Taught to chain herself gracefully / In an invisible cage.

By Khushi Pahuja
February 3, 2020
For I Am A Woman
Walk Away If He Calls The Mechanic
Picture of a pile of spanners in different sizes

This malignancy of toxic masculinity is a mutant inheritance that is hard to eradicate. However, initiating discussions about it and spreading awareness is essential to minimise the cost to its victims.

By Abdullah Erikat
October 1, 2019
Walk Away If He Calls The Mechanic
Qandeel: The Story Of A Small Town Girl With Big Dreams
Picture of Qandeel Baloch

Fouzia Azeem, more popularly known as Qandeel Baloch,was called Pakistan’s Kim Kardashian. Madiha Tahir, a journalist and filmmaker who is interviewed in the documentary,questions this comparison. To quote her: “She (Qandeel) is not Kim Kardashian at all. She is not famous for being rich. An upper-class woman would have her class protection and it’s unlikely that an upper-class woman would be supporting her family from these social media videos.”

By Zulfiya Hamzaki
June 1, 2019
Qandeel: The Story Of A Small Town Girl With Big Dreams
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