Deepak Mahato
‘My Choice’ directed by Homi Adajania and voiced by Deepika Padukone for the Vogue Empower campaign that went viral on social networking sites is getting both positive and negative responses from women of the state.
Although the effort made to represent equality is being appreciated by a maximum number of women a question mark hangs as the video talks about premarital sex and sex outside marriage.
College girls appreciating the video state that it is outspoken and questions of choices in the minds of women not enjoying equal privilege in male-dominated Indian society has been raised appropriately.
There are several women in the city who strongly disagree with several points raised in the video. They firmly believe be it women or men, sex after marriage is no choice. One has to be faithful to their partners. They also believe that premarital sex needs to be handled with precaution.
“In the country where talking sex is a taboo, premarital sex is a very delicate topic. Premarital sex is happening but we cannot promote it as it can invite unwanted pregnancy, mental trauma and sex-borne diseases,” said Namrata Mohanty, a bank manager and resident of Rourkela.
She firmly believes that with time the structure of society is changing and with the changes in lifestyle new demands are coming into existence. “To cope with the choices like premarital sex the younger generation will have to be educated first,” added Mohanty.
Rupa, a postgraduate student, believes the points picked up in the ‘My Choice’ video should not be misinterpreted. She believes the video is all about equality. “I firmly believe the video is not asking women to go for premarital sex or choose to sleep with anyone outside marriage. I believe the video is only talking about equality. It also focuses on how differently society treats males and females,” said Rupa.
She added that the video is a sarcastic piece. “The video with Deepika’s voiceover is targeting a hypocrite society in the larger context. Though Deepika regularly says my choice, one has to understand the meaning within and not word-to-word meaning. According to me I feel society should change its view. If girls choose to sleep outside marriage or choose to indulge in premarital sex the same should be applicable for males too,” said Rupa.
She was seconded by another graduate student Tanushree who believes the video is asking questions rather than making statements. “The video speaks about rights of women. We should not stick to the particular lines which only talk about sex choices. I firmly believe the video is all about the pain Indian women have been facing since ages. I believe the video is asking the dominant males if a female chooses to have sex outside marriage will she get the same love and devotion from a male which they expect from their partners after doing the same,” said Tanushree.