When Masculinity Harms Men
95% of incidents of violence in India are committed by men. The final episode of Season 3 examines why this is the case and how deeply-entrenched notions of masculinity affect attitudes towards women. The episode also helps explain the larger violence we witness in society, be it in incidents of road rage, ragging or acid attacks. It explores how fixed notions of masculinity are shaped and how they victimize not only those at the receiving end, but men themselves as well.
On youtube:
Guest profile:
Dr Lenin Raghuvanshi grew up in Uttar Pradesh where he saw unequal relationships between men and women, with the men being stronger, violent and controlling of the women. He chose a different path for himself and went on to become one of the founding members of People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, a Varanasi-based NGO which works for the upliftment of the marginalized sections of the society. He is also a Dalit rights activist.
Email: lenin@pvchr.asia | Website: www.pvchr.asia
How masculinity ends up crippling men, depriving them of expressing normal human emotions like love, pain and vulnerability is the focus of this segment. Five men originally from the U.P.-Haryana regions talk about how they were taught by their own families to suppress their instincts and conform to a certain stereotype of being male and how this manifested in their behaviour.
