Why 'Pink' in my opinion is lukewarm

I was confused after watching 'Pink'. There was nothing pink about the movie. Pink is soft, feminine and innocent. So neither the title nor the contents of the movie justified the title. The movie touched upon the issue of 'feminism' through the lens of an old lawyer who had quit the profession and a young Muslim lady Falak Ali, who is the more reactive, vocal and takes a stand. I believe the leading lady Meenal and her North-Eastern friend fail to make a mark. The entire movie revolves around how the protagonist, Meenal feels victimized for an act she commits for her own protection. She is inarticulate and unsure of stepping up for herself during the trail period. The movie has two silent heroes - the landlard and the lawyer who come to the ladies' rescue. Women have been perceived as the weaker sex, unlike Deepika Padukone in Piku who owns her feelings and actions.

The plot varies too much in intensity - the three women friends who are flatmates seem so confused and inconsistent with their emotions: one moment they are trying to laugh, the next moment they act helpless together and individually. Falak is shown with overly motherly affection towards her two friends while she herself falls week and breaks down in front of the jury, putting herself and other two friends' in disrepute.  There was too much contrast in the acting skills of everyone - the legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan makes an impact while speaking about the four essential safety rules for women and the judge makes his presence felt while giving his judgement. The newcomers stumble upon their performances, quite like the 'casual' approach of youth these days. The characters seamed easily replaceable. Any gym-going good-looking bunch of youth would have played the roles. I think one of the underlying messages the movie is trying to deliver is whether youth of today understands the consequences of their actions...

This is where maturity, articulation, knowledge and self-awareness play importance. Rather than raising questions on gender-sensitivity, the movie raises questions on which direction the youth of the country is going? Morality or not, but is an average urban young woman of India who lives alone or with friends open to having multiple sexual relationships? Is she already open-minded enough to having an affair with an older man and telling her friends about it? Can she bring her boyfriend to her apartment in the presence of her friends and neighbors and not feel judged? If yes, then would she be so fragile so as to not communicate her act of defending herself even while she's getting punished for it under the rule of law? Would a women who's had multiple relationships not be able to sense an impending danger from a bunch of guys she meets for drinks after a rock concert? Does experience teach women nothing - is the movie trying to imply that! It clearly downplays the emotional intelligence of women and their sense of judgement while again giving power to a man to save them.

In recent movies like Sarabjit, where a leading female actor fights her way to the judicial system, Pink puts a question mark on the sensibilities of an urban woman and her failure/ unwillingness in proving herself correct - for saving her job, responding to racial slurs, reacting to a moral online obscenity and seeking adequate help at the time of crisis. A few bold stunts by women I believe could have made the movie slightly inspirational.        

Using 'Amplification' to assert and get professional credit

Let me start this blog with something frivolous and intuitive. I took a Facebook quiz on a friend's timeline, which gave a pompous result. This was immediately followed by another article, which connected the dots for an idea close to my heart and faced by women in regular office environments and largely in positions of power.

While I certainly find it amusing running for the US president; I've sat in meetings of national prominence and talked down by men - only to realise later how men use this strategy to dominate women. Not did men just deny women's contribution in meetings, they claimed their ideas as their own. It is rightly said that great ideas are either cut at the nip or never make it to the top! In many of my meetings at NIPFP, men took more than 60% of average time, were curt and openly discourteous to women, making many women leave the team within 2-3 months. I survived for 11 months! When an original idea is severely bantered, it is a compliment; but when its called a 'lipstick' presentation, its a sexist bully!

In a team where women are in small numbers, amplification strategy could bear positive results. Women could make their voices heard and break the glass ceiling. In Obama's team, women would make a point, which would then be repeated by another woman - giving her the credit. Men took notice and recognised the contribution of women. In the ideal world, good ideas are picked up from board rooms without even getting acknowledged, hence this strategy may nudge something fruitful for women's significance.

For example, today at IIT Delhi after one my presentations, a part-time student aggressively started asking me about sources I've used from my presentation as he also wanted to work on the idea. I'm not sure, what happened to the concept of partnering and collaborating! Such incidents constantly remind me of how India continues to remain a largely patriarchal society, where for some reason men are either raised with low morals as they 'perhaps' lack the image of working women. Hilary Clinton's victory would make her the first woman president in 200 years of the world's greatest democracy. For India to reach somewhere close, more cooperation would be required both from women and men in positions of power.

   

In my first experience to a Youth Parliament at Constitutional Club of India in July, 2016; I scored well for my preparedness as a Minister of Finance. In a country of 1.25 billion people, knowledge of application-based finance in a woman is rare. However, as we broaden our application of policies to grass-root issues, I think strategies like amplification would become essential for women to hold hands to succeed.

Why Kerry's IIT remark is serious for Delhi's governance; but a pro-business tip!

John Kerry, the US Senator of State made a remarkable statement at IIT Delhi a fortnight back. There were two things that were closely relatable: i) my recently joining IIT Delhi and ii) living near the Diplomatic Enclave. However, his retort to students on reaching the auditorium on boats or "amphibious vehicles" did not apply to me as immense water logging and traffic congestion towards IIT assured me of the lecture going to be called off. I managed to reach only in 3rd attempt around 3 P.M. - in double the time. So while I honour Kerry's patience in making it to campus despite delay; his 'jovial' jibe on the state and preparedness of the Capital for inclement weather must not be taken for granted. Delhi's flash flood woes is not just a reminder of failure in addressing traffic issues of citizens, but also a lesson for managing similar embarrassments for future dignitaries.  

New Delhi is the legislative, judiciary and administrative capital of world's fastest growing economy. It caters not just to matter's of governance, but also business being next to the country's upcoming silicon valley - Gurugram. Yet, despite repeated incidents of emergencies and water-borne diseases during monsoons, there's lack of preventive measures in the eventuality of a natural calamity. Response time is delayed, leaving people stranded, frustrated and desperate. During the recent crisis, although Delhi government took curative steps by deploying NDMC officials to water-clogged areas, this cannot be practised throughout Delhi. It took 2-hours for the motorised pump to suck water at a Shanti Path underpass - since the drainage system was blocked. Simple modifications in designing of roads and better construction can avoid these disasters.  

Shaky Governance

At this point, it is pertinent to ask: Why can't cities be planned better? Problem of floods in urban areas is prevalent throughout the country. While vision for developing 100 Smart Cities is out by the government, floods are crippling Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai; not to mention the 7-hour blockage in the newest and only 16-year old city, Gurugram. Drainage system of London never fails! Can such good practices not be followed in our cities?

Problems due to flash floods time and again cause problems to commuters: there's a clear market failure and need for government intervention to control surge pricing in NCR at the time of crises; but no official circular by the government seems to address this problem. Another one is provision for proper drainage system in Delhi Metro - which has won many awards internationally for its efficiency; however, there are surprisingly no public documents which specify how uninterrupted services can be provided during floods; or other emergency provisions during natural disasters like earthquake. 

Some Solutions

Government at the Centre, State and Union-level has emphasised using PPPs for financing infrastructure not just for construction but also O&M. PPPs could well be used for innovative ideas! Malaysia's SMART Tunnel is an excellent innovative example for designing infrastructure for a seamless commute during flash floods. UK's fast-draining concrete is another possible alternative for flood control.   

While Kerry kept his much-appreciated promise for talk at IIT; I cannot let go off his comment on amphibious vehicles! I think his 'supposed' shot in the dark remark was a bull's eye for a place like IIT! Ola made news by deploying boats during Tamil Nadu floods. This gesture was purely out of CSR! Its time countries like India invest in R&D for disaster risk. IIT Delhi itself can promote such research on campus and who knows that in the rush of rat-racing IT start-ups, one in an amphibious vehicle could stand out and prove disruptive! 

(Payal Dey is a Doctoral Scholar at IIT Delhi. Thoughts are personal - article must be duly acknowledged and cited before use. Email: payal.dey@gmail.com)