Be the Change

Be the Change

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Events- 4th December, juxtapositions and positioning hands



Witnessing the events of Fourth December, I was stuck between a connection that seems to exist between masculinity and hands. For instance the props in Pranab Mukherjee’s theatre performance, Man to Man Talk (Delhi School of Economics, 2.00 pm), largely consisted of close-up photographs of hands- hands holding scissors, hands pushing needles, knives, hands, hands and more hands surrounding a single severed leg. Pranab was himself gesturing, pointing, gesticulating, inviting, accusing...

Then in the evening, at the art show, Relocating Masculinities (School of Arts & Aesthetics, JNU, 6.00 pm inauguration) there was again that show of hands in the exhibits- hands folded over genitals, hands gripping hips, hands holding instruments as diverse as knives and cameras. It was almost like Old Mac Donald’s farm with a hand hand here and a hand hand there. And in the central panel (curving artistically around the middle of the room), there were those male hands again trying to wash off blood- gripping, scraping, cleaning with flowing water. The video installation Retakes of the Shadow also had (apart from other themes of lotuses, Godhra and goddesses) hands drumming/pumping in furious rhythm.

So what is it with male hands and masculinity? Are they the handles of masculinity or its windows? Do they provide the tactile surface through which masculinity feels its power as well as its powerlessness? After all it is the hands that pinch, grope, hold the instruments of authority and death and fold in apprehension and appeasement. I can’t say, but somehow hands seemed to hold a mystical power in them today.

Apart from the hands, the art show Relocating Masculinities also had various other photographs and a couple of installations depicting, deconstructing, displaying masculinity. These were by renowned artists like Atul Bhalla, BV Suresh, Kirti Arora, Rameshwar Broota, Sheba Chhachhi and Sunil Gupta. The curators (all young students of the department) spoke about the tough but satisfying journey they had made while putting together a show focussing on the theme of masculinity. The show is on till the Fourteenth of December and can be seen by all who are interested.

The day also included the Exhibition on Masculinity at the Ramjas College lawns and a fare of movies spread across various locations.

There was a lively panel discussion at Kirori Mal College on Gender-based Violence: will the tide turn? The discussants included participants from ICRW, who showed some striking spots that they had done for a TV campaign a few years ago. Their presentations revealed the horrendously high percentage of domestic violence (over forty percent) in Indian households. They emphasised the fact that until underlying gender inequities were addressed the tide would not turn. Their conclusion was that young men usually shared a stereotypical view of what masculine and feminine behaviour should consist of and acted according to these norms. Often young women also shared these belief systems. Both men and women had to act together to dispel myths surrounding human relations for gender based violence to be minimised if not end.

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