सलाम नमस्ते INDIA

Dekh Le: New ad takes on men who stare at women in public A new ad called 'Dekh Le' sends a subtle yet hard-hitting message about women's empowerment. To leer, lech at, ogle, stare and pass snide remarks at women is seen as a right by men in India. And understandably enough, the act leaves women feeling uncomfortable and violated.  While most of the women continue to suffer this ignominy in silence rather than speak up about it, Whistling Woods International (WWI), a film school in India, has sought to address the problem. The new ad opens with two men staring at a girl riding a scooter while wearing shorts. In a new video that was released recently, to commemorate the completion of 100 years of Indian cinema, WWI focussed on "Women Empowerment" as it is the need of the hour. The video shows four instances of women dealing with the perverts by flashing a mirror or glasses in their faces. The idea is to show the men how the look when...

Hear That Shebang? Of the many fears that the December 16 gangrape of a young paramedic in Delhi last year unleashed, one important but cynical one was that the public outrage that had erupted in its wake would fade away just as quickly as it had built up. That the perpetrators would get away, the case would drag on for years, and nothing, really, would change on the ground. That what Lessing had exhorted women to do would not materialise. But that fear seems unfounded. Exactly a year after the barbaric rape, the discourse on women’s rights has not only persisted, it has acquired new shades, more nuance and a stronger, more assertive tone. Be it of Suzette Jordan, a single mother of two who was gangraped in Calcutta, but refused to be referred to as the ‘Park Street rape victim’ and demanded she be identified by her real name, even though the law prohibits anyone from naming a rape victim; of the law intern who plucked up the courage to blog about retired Supreme Court judge A.K....