Sunday 13 May 2012

Satyamev Jayate - Child Abuse - Episode 2

Aamir Khan as an amazing Anchor of Satyamev Jayate
We were really fed up of rabble rousing newsroom anchors. And I am not one of those politically unattached people who want to have nothing to do with social issues. Indeed social issues were for most part of my life my only hobby .But the television anchors proved with endless effort that they were all sound and fury signifying nothing .Television has become cacophony, mostly.
The amazing thing about Aamir Khan is that he really brings out the feeling that issues are real .They are about us not about the society , not about the government. They can and do happen to us, they do happen around us. And most importantly the way he presents it it really strikes a chord in our hearts.

Issue of Child Abuse
The issue of child abuse is a complex one to assess. The data presented by Aamir Khan says more than 53 per cent of people of our country have gone through some form of abuse at some point of childhood .Like female infanticide it is common people you and me who are victims as well as perpetrators . It is a not even a social problem like female infanticide. It is a personal problem. It is moreover a personal problem to half the population of our country if the data that Aamir Presented is right.

Dimentions of Discussion
And there are several dimentions to the whole issue like children themselves getting sexually active at very early age , like consensual fondling among children of almost the same age ,like incest or even more serious issue of childhood pregnancy, or social issues like child marriage or educational issues like lack of understanding sexual change in a young kids body when it is actually happening .Then there are still more complex syndromes which only psychytrists would be able to discuss . There is also issue of some kids knowing early in their young life that they are not exactly what the society straight in terms of their sexual orientations .We need to decriminalise and socially accept these behaviors too.

Discussing Taboos
Aamir Khan has proved that if you are sensitive enough there is no censure in India. No one is asking why he is discussing these issues which are a taboo in Indian Society on a Sunday morning when whole family sits around the TV . Its most amazing finding family members actually asking each other to sit down and watch this programme.

Part of our Drawing Room Discussion
Amir Khan has done the single biggest favour to us by making sex a part of our drawing room discussion .High time our nation demystifies sex . Sex is an integral part of our lives and it needs to be understood well , very well in early part of our lives .Even without information ,without knowledge, people will indulge in sexual activities cause it is part of our genetic code .It’s better that our kids understand their behaviour in right perspective .

Coming out of the Guilt
Rape or sexual abuse is only not a crime like any other physical assault. It is also different from consensual sex which even teenagers or pre-teenagers engage in. It is also different from kids exploring that they are gay or lesbians or bisexual .Rape or abuse has one distinct feature. It continuously works on the psyche of the victim. As soon as a victim of assault is able to come out of the guilt feeling he has worked his way out of the mental trauma.

Aamir's Workshop
Aamir's workshop was amazing. I must congratulate the specialists for creating this workshop for Aamir .Without trivialising the issue and considering that the workshop was for children it was amazing the way he executed the workshop and its content. People who oppose sex education should see how things need to be presented to children. Children are intelligent enough to understand if they are told what is right and wrong.

Passion of the Satyamev Jayate crew
If you are passionate enough it doesn’t matter what people think. Aamir Khan has proved that if you are sensitive enough there is no censure, there can be no censure. Kudos to Aamir Khan and the crew of Satyamev Jayate . If you can discuss such issues which are deep seated Taboo in our mind and in our society, on a Sunday Morning show you have already changed the nation.



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