Of drunk men, national struggle and renaissance.

While writing about addiction in cinema I could not help but write about Devdas.  Based on the Bengali novella of the same name by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay 15^th September 1876 – 16^th January 1938). Published in 1917 the novella was written in 1901. Depicting the life of an indecisive obsessive man with little courage. Turned into a romantic tale over the years the film evokes pity-turning Devdas into the ultimate fallen hero of Indian cinema.  In over one century Devdas has been Adapted for film, theater and television and translated into several Indian languages. The earliest film based on the book was made in 1928. 

The 2002 Bollywood version of the film brought the story back to popularity. However the film was more about the visual effects and nostalgia than the original abject nature of the titular character of book.  Chattopadhyay makes a scathing commentary about the modern educated man of his time. Torn between a stereotype and being a rational man this book continues to provide an analysis of human emotions. 

Queer black representation in films

I felt rather privileged to be invited to speak as a panellist at a film festival organised by Rainbow Noir this weekend. I was amazed by the independent films I watched, some heart warming some pointing out a frightening reality experienced by QTIPOC around the world.

At the heart of this festival lay two basic ideas one to showcase Black LGBT history through cinema and the second to provide a wider representation of the LBGT community. Representation is perhaps the most important issue here. October in the UK is celebrated as Black History Month. Which while essential is not very well publicised and often is met with accusations of racism. These accusations could not be further from the truth. History is often told in an ethnocentric manner, forgetting an essential part of the process. The history of black people is often forgotten or told crudely, lacking in nuance. However even within the events organised as part of Black History Month some histories are not told.

At a conference I was earlier this month a participant spoke about how the only Black History they learnt was about slavery. Black identity is not a monolith it covers several intersectional identities, each of which have their own intellectual standpoint. In an era when LGBTQ identity is either (re)criminalised or punished by death history of the community takes on a political meaning. A  classic example is India where both pro and anti LGBTQ rights groups argue by using history as an example. Claiming and locating homosexuality either in the west or in an ancient past does little to remedy the situation at hand. Homosexuality is often spoken about as a western idea and a consequence of westernisation threatening to erode the moral fabric of ‘traditional’ society. Despite these claims LGBTQ history does exist, it does not always follow a linear path or conform to the present day narrative, it is still a history that needs telling.    

Films are perhaps the best medium to capture and transmit this history. A popular means of communication of ideas films are often used as propaganda and the mouthpiece of the nation. The three biggest cinema industries (Indian, Chinese and Hollywood) are characterised by their heteronormative content. Given the nationalistic element it comes as no surprise that most films communicate a heteronormative, patriarchal reality. LGBTQ characters if present tend not to be main characters adding very little to the plot. Then of course there is the problem of stereotyping where the LGBTQ character lacks nuances and is solely a part of the scenery. The Vito Russo Test seeks to address the issue of LGBTQ representation in films its criteria being. While it does not guarantee the film is a good representation a lot of mainstream films fail to pass this test.

Representation is  a problematic area of mass media. at its heart lies the idea that mere inclusion is not enough for representation to matter it needs to be nuanced, it needs to challenge and dismantle stereotypes. The problem with an incorrect representation is that it informs a large majority about a minority. Playing into existing fantasies about a minority  a poor representation does  not build an understanding of minorities as people. Mainstream cinema tends to be formulaic and ahistorical even when it attempts to portray history it presents an anachronistic version of history.  Black people and particularly black LGBTQ people are excluded from this cinematic history.

Watching the numerous films I did on Saturday one could see a nuanced narrative of the community, safe, precarious, dangerous, celebratory, happy and sad. These were not mainstream films, while not perfect they captured the nuanced life of the community. Thinking back of the LGBTQ films I have watched it was almost always the non-mainstream films that have done any justice to the subjects they seek to represent. This is particularly true of Indian cinema, mainstream cinema uses homosexuality as a running gag through films, gay best friends, fashion designers or butch women bodyguards are the only visibility the community receives. In contrast Indian art cinema which is not commercially viable manages to create complex characters for whom there is sympathy not scorn. Memories of March by Rituparno Ghosh is one such film that tackles homophobia, coming out of the closet and acceptance without resorting to stereotypes. While the film is by no means perfect it is mature in its depiction of the LGBTQ community in India.

As stated earlier mere presence is not always indicative of representation, knowledge of the subject (in this case the LGBTQ community) is essential. Mere visibility does not always help tackle a complex subject, as Foucault points out visibility is a trap. While it is assumed that films have little or no effect on our formation of stereotypes the idea is not true. Films represent our daily lives, our fantasies. It is no surprise then that the common Hollywood trope where the black man dies first is also a reality on the streets of America.  When the only image one sees of transgender characters is comical, promiscuous and confused is it any surprise then that those are the exact slurs used against transgender people in real life.  In my research on Bollywood films and their audience the blur between cinematic reality and mundane reality crossed paths. While whistling at raunchy musical numbers on screen the men who watched these films also extended this behaviour to women around them. Cinema is not divorced from reality neither is it a discrete entity which is contained in a cinema hall. To represent accurately is not pedanticism but a necessity.

                                                          Trailer Memories in March 

Queering Nationalism and nationalising the queer- An observation from Political Pride Manchester

The last weekend was busy Manchester Pride and Political Pride were both running at the same time not to mention the numerous events around the city. It is lovely to see everyone making the most of the last of summer.

While Manchester Pride was the centre of the city Political Pride was more restrained and certainly focused on the LGBTQIA community. A month before Manchester Pride shops had rainbow flags everywhere. The very same organisations that have have been pulled up in recent years for mistreatment of workers of all sexualities. This alignment with a fringe movement would seem contradictory but it is not. As one friend remarked Pride has become a family event full of rainbows where you can take your children to wave at gay people who will wave back. We have forgotten how this is a same community that was going to unleash the destruction of the family and morality. Rainbows are bright, cheerful and non-threatening. You can pick up a bag of British carrots and potatoes in a shop full of rainbow flags.

This is where the change lies the community that was once dangerous has now been domesticated. It has been given the same moral institutions that heterosexual individuals are expected to enter into- marriage. Marriage is the one institution that carries with it not only a gendered patriarchal expectation but also a nationalistic one. Gay weddings are not only good for business but also good for the national image. Gay marriage is now seen as one of the last bastions of liberation. It plays on the idea that by offering the LGBTQIA community the same ‘privileges’ as heterosexual couples equality has been achieved. It plays into the idea it is so much better out here than anywhere else where gay people are murdered.

The problem with this comparison is that it puts across a crude idea of queer liberation through the framework of national identity. Isn’t that how the right plays the immigration debate, eroding British values, their liberalism interfering with our liberal society. Needless to say we won’t be seeing a black liberation march meet such acceptance anytime soon. Pride events have come to pit one issue against another. Homosexuality is pitted against race and immigration. The apparent liberation of the LGBTQIA community is seen as a benchmark of civilisation. Is it any surprise then that this argument is used in the LGBTQIA community. In the few years I have lived here I have been told to be grateful, or asked why my country or community are homophobic. Some even going as far to say well black people have been through so much why are they so homophobic? Then of course is the other side of this propaganda black people and immigrants have it so good however being LGBTQIA is still looked down upon.

Queerness has acquired nationality in its fight for liberation. It is both a mark of liberation and national degradation. However this is not an idea that is alien to nationalism. Anne McClintock claims that all nationalisms are gendered and dangerous. Taking this argument forward it would be appropriate to say nationalism is gendered and heterosexual. Since the link between women as reproducers of culture symbolically and literally signifies the strength of the nation its obvious sexuality must also be mentioned. Given the strong connection family plays in nationalism is it any surprise that heterosexual women who fail in this expectation are immediately classified as lesbians. Similar fears exist around feminists of all sexualities whose claims are often thought of as damaging family life.  

While Britain is going through a phase where gay rights are more accepted the same cannot be said for other nations that have recriminalised homosexuality. I will stress on the word recriminalised here because it is often imagined that the history of homosexuality in the global south has been a monolith since Independence.  Recriminalising homosexuality has much to do with nationalism, as it has to do with the resurgence of religious and political extremism. Take for example Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code  which became an issue in the general election of 2014. Both sides of the debate focused very little on the present but went back to the glorious past. The liberal side arguing that our history has had a liberal interpretation of sexual identity which has only just been destroyed through colonisation. The counter argument that is put forward is that Indian values have been eroded in the recent colonial past and sexual morality must be restored. Both sides harp on the past and both do little for the LGBTQIA community in the present.

It is the liberal side of the argument that is picked up by LGBTQIA activists in the west Britain included. While the role of colonialism cannot be negated to insist that the former colonial subject is still reeling under cultural trauma denies agency and panders to homophobia. Recriminalising homosexuality in this moment of time comes as no surprise, at a time when censorship and violent opposition to anything perceived as non-Indian exist homosexuality is one of the many casualties.

History is used as a political tool to justify social exclusion. Indian history in particular has a way of making inroads into political, scientific, cultural discussion. We are both a liberal and conservative nation at the same time when it suits us. Nationality plays a role in how we view all kinds of issues. What I mean by this is that history is invoked to justify the problems of the present. Take for instance the homosexuality debate where a few random moments and exceptions in history are used as an argument. Invoking history does little for a community that lives precariously on the margins. However it is not all bad as there is still space for gay marriage in India, while homosexual activity is criminalised the law does not ban gay marriages, loophole that came under scrutiny in recent months. As in the west this was met with exhilaration, however it was short lived.  The gentleman in question and his mother put out a matrimonial advert which like the millions of adverts in Indian newspapers demanded ‘a boy of an upper caste background’.  As in the west this did not challenge the status quo but affirmed it.

The most exhilarating thing queerness can do in light of these changes is to queer gendered heterosexualised notions of the society it lives in. While it is wonderful that the law now accepts gay marriage it should not turn into the end of the discussion.  Queerness at the heart of it has the potential to challenge troubling ideas of nationality, gender, sexuality, race and class.

Cutting her nose to spite his face: Violence against women in India and the collusion of power

Here is an abstract of a paper I published recently. A big thank you to the Psychology of Women's Section who thought my work was meaningful for their readers. 

The Paper is free to read and download and the link below will let you access the full paper.


Title -Cutting her nose to spite his face: Violence against women in India and the collusion of power 

Abstract -  In the last few years crime against women in India has increased dramatically. What stands out about these crimes is how the perpetrators of these crimes use violence to disable a woman; through, for example, acid attacks, ‘honour crime’ and public stripping. The perpetrators often claim to do this in order to preserve their notion of ‘Indian culture’. These notions are tied within understandings of women’s roles as submissive, chaste, modest and ‘traditional’. Women’s bodies are the primary site for this violence as disfiguring the female body sends out a cautionary message to other women not to transgress boundaries that have been laid out by those who feel they must preserve this culture. 

These understandings of ‘Indian culture’ are often invented and are tied to nationalismwhich poses a threat to ‘Westernised Indians’ particularly women. Cases such as the Delhi Gang Rape case or the attack on pubs in Mangalore which led to the ‘pink chuddi campaign’ have caught the eye of the media, however, one sees them being justified by the perpetrators on thegrounds of protecting ‘Indian culture’. When these crimes are presented in the Western media they are often collude with the perpetrators of these crimes by using these notions of ‘tradition’. Western ideas of India and how Eastern values must be preserved from Western civilisation often undermine the victim’s ordeal. 

Keywords: Gendered violence; honour crime; India; nationalism. 

Reference-  Soans, S (2015) Cutting her nose to spite his face: Violence against women in India and the collusion of power. Psychology of Women Section Review – Vol. 17 –pages 52-65


Here is a link to the paper https://www.academia.edu/12092328/Cutting_her_nose_to_spite_his_face_Violence_against_women_in_India_and_the_collusion_of_power

White women’s burdens

I keep coming away from feminist events feeling more and more empty and disconnected with myself. Most times I am spoken at or about as if I was not in the room. I am almost never an individual but a part of a collective characterised by tradition and culture. I can only be the exotic helpless other who is tortured by tradition. I wont deny tradition, culture and religion are used against women in the global south but culture is everywhere. Even in the first world with all its liberalism is rife with culture and all the maladies that accompany it. This week my facebook page has been inundated with stories of the Delhi rapist blaming his victim for playing a part in her own rape. It is shocking news, even disgusting how someone is so oblivious of their crime. For the victims family hearing those words would have been a cruel reminder what their daughter went through.

I don’t deny the nature of the crime or its impact, it’s the manner in which this narrative has played out in the media unjust. Indian men are positioned as more vile and disgusting than men anywhere else. In the west smug stories of how culture, religion bring about violence are used to demonstrate how progressive the western world is to have thrown off those shackles and moved onto a rational society. Women are used in this debate to prove the achievements of the western world. Conny Roggeband and Mieke Verloo have written a brilliant paper on the subject of how western and migrant women are positioned in national debates in the Netherlands. The idea that migrant women of colour women suffer violence is based in reality however the same is true of white women. With the 3% conviction rate in the UK the notion of the liberal, west starts to fall apart.

Culture is everywhere and rape culture is everywhere. Everyday I see buses plastered with posters of 50 Shades of Grey indicative of rape culture in British society. Why is there such a denial that culture exists in the west? I have heard many socialists talk about how they have no culture in the west. I suspect this is racism hiding behind orientalism, exotic dress and food are thought to be the only hallmarks of culture. Sociologists have a term for this – ethnocentrism. The naïve assumption that ones way of behaving and acting were the norm and everyone else is inferior positions the non-western subject as subnormal. In India it is normal to define foreign cultures as inferior. We often use the argument that we have female goddesses which translates into respect for women. This could not be further from the truth, the existence of female deities does nothing for mortal women, neither does the law. Indian women are not liberated because of their goddesses. Western women are not liberated by their atheistic secular society. Gender violence is a part of the left socialist’s great shame. Recently a friend posted an article about the denial of violence in the left movement you can read all about it here. War On Women – It’s A Left Wing Problem Too! The debate around rights has far too long concentrated on saying hey look we are better than that 3^rd world nation at least we are not…… The rights the western world fought are part of an on going struggle complacency will not keep them alive and ensure they are  enforced. In a era when right wing forces threaten to destroy these rights it is foolish to laud over past victories that have not been fully realised 

I accept India is not perfect I wont deny the documentary needs to be screened and it should lead to discussions however those discussions should not turn into a moral finger pointing match. When I was in India I saw this debate of the save Indian male as legitimate for obvious reasons in the UK I see it as unfair for the simple reason it tells women in the west this big lie that they are free and liberated. We women of colour are trapped by our culture white women are trapped in their liberal world.

References

Roggeband, C., & Verloo, M. (2007). Dutch women are liberated, migrant women are a problem: The evolution of policy frames on gender and migration in the Netherlands, 1995–2005. Social Policy & Administration, 41(3), 271-288.

https://smashinggenderchange.wordpress.com/2015/03/05/war-on-women-its-a-left-wing-problem-too/

India and ET

Studying the history of Indian cinema has taught me things I was not previously aware of. The film ET for instance has Indian origins….. and no I am not one of those people who claim everything comes from India. An unfinished project by Satyajit Ray was the basis of the much loved American film. Personally I didn’t think aliens and sci fi films were subjects we were preoccupied with India but there you go. 

Legal rights of Indian women.