Antardrishti

  In terms of gender, history has always favored men. Regardless of what period of history is under consideration, women have been treated unfairly in virtually all cultures. Men have always been taught that they are the superior gender, the stronger sex, the ones who should be in control and who deserve power. The insecurity of men to shield this power and position led to the eventual domination over women. Women have had considerably lower agency, power and opportunities compared to men. However, the one thing which sets apart the two genders also gives women their indispensable position in the world; they can reproduce. Till recent times, this was central to the identity of women. In medieval and early modern Europe, the situation wasn’t any different. THE NEED FOR A SUCCESSOR The need of children was felt in all households big or small. While it meant extra hands on the farm for a poor medieval farmer, the birth of a royal child certainly had drastic implications for a nation. ...

  Introduction “God ordered his man to build an ark big enough to accommodate a pair of all the animals of this world along with his wife, because the flood was coming.” This story may feel familiar not only to you but millions of people of different religions and civilizations. The story of a ‘flood’ that wiped out the entire humanity could be heard in every part of this world although with some regional variations. The variation could be seen best in the difference of names of the ‘man’ ranging from Noah to Manu and many more. These stories are in existence from centuries and have a vast history. But the stories are not free from questions of scholars, theologians, geologists, historians, and even atheist. Why almost every ancient civilization mentions about flood? Are these stories just myth? Which story is the truest? How did these stories come into existence? And most importantly, was there any such flood? Answering these questions is difficult but not impossible. A revisi...

  "Cinema is an edited reality and a mirror of society. While society decides morality, films are desperate to connect with the audience and fulfil what the society fancies. In turn, the film affects the society; thus, cinema and society reflect each other." -Javed Akhtar    Media reflects what is prevailing in society and society reflects the ‘trend’. Thus, both mirror each other. Even psychological studies have proven that the graphic motion presentation leaves a solid image on our sub-conscious and conscious mind. But this fact is not used the way it should have been. This at times, leave me with a thought that what if depiction of women was different? What if we weren’t used as stepping stone or beautifying object? Therefore, movies could act as the proxy to understand how prevalent gender bias and stereotypes are in any society. These questions apply to the media of whole world including Hollywood movies which are regarded as far better than Bollywood or any ...