By Aradhita Pratihar
The recent satirical video featuring bollywood actress Kalki Koechlin and VJ Juhi Pandey titled—“ITS YOUR FAULT”—takes a dig at some of the controversial comments made by prominent public figures in the wake of the recent gang rape cases. The video has become an internet sensation since its advent on you tube and hence resulted in conjuring more than five million viewers. The video features Kalki explaining sarcastically but at the same time gleefully to the women in general that rape is actually “their fault”. The video puts forth in a satirical way by making a dig at not just the act of rape but also to the insensitive statements holding women responsible to obscure or perpetrate the crime.
Juhi and Kalki through their spectacular enactment give us a vivid description of the harrowing experience that a woman undergoes even after the ordeal ends and has to relive the horror yet again when the traumatized and battered victim goes to the police to lodge a complaint. In most cases it has been observed that the policemen completely subverts the situation by blaming the women instead and accusing them of having dressed too, “inappropriately” or going out with male friends in the wee hours, which apparently enhances the woman’s vulnerability in making them fall prey to such heinous crimes. Such misconceptions are still deeply ingrained in people’s psyche which do not stop the from making such absurd comments regarding women. This further adds to the misery and anguish of the ‘victim’, who has already been “scarred for life’’ and leads to the complete breakdown of her already “tattered soul”. The society also regards them with contempt and in the process adopts an indifferent attitude towards the “rape victims”. So, the women ends up suffering a significant amount of mental and physical trauma , since they lose their honor and position in society and also results in dwindling of their marriage prospects, if they are of marriageable age .
Such videos become extremely crucial in revolutionizing the way people comprehend the very act of rape solely being a woman’s fault and thus serve as effective tools for cleansing their “misogynistic’’ mindsets. What we need is a way to directly combat rape using force or surveillance. We need a culture where self-defense is not just a mans game, where rapists wont be let off only after a few years. We need a system where rape is not just reported but heard and acted upon. We need a real change in our behavior and our attitude not , not a political wedge issue.
