It is very easy to make heads turn in a city like Chennai. If you are a woman, all you have to do is just be so. Just walk around, and you will know what I mean. If you are a man, all you have to do to gather attention is to wear a pink shirt or tee. There you are, identified as someone unique and out-of-crowd. Thanks to Saif Ali Khan in Salaam Namaste, some of the Indian cities have changed its attitude towards pink-wearing-men. But, what can you expect out of a city that has bred and nurtured conservatism in its everyday rhythms of life. But to term certain things as just conservatism is ignoring the larger part of the issue. And this pink issue is definitely one of those. Apart from Chennai’s inability to catch up with the changing trends of lifestyle, this attitude of the city captures the very essence of Chennai. It’s fondness to preserve gender stereotypes is clearly evident in the lifestyle of Chennaites! Not that the other Indian cities have broken away from gender stereotypes, but atleast, efforts, voluntarily or involuntarily, taken by the people of those cities are evident.
The class and caste conscious Chennai is unique in one of its cultural aspects. Unanimously, people from various classes agree to the city’s gender stereotypes, and anyone breaking away from these stereotypes will be laughed at. Everyday life is really exciting and challenging in Chennai, if you are a non-conformist, no matter which part of the social stratum you belong to! The only difference being the way you are being laughed at. The so called ‘elite’ class term pinkish man to be ‘gay’ish. They wonder, how could a macho man, with his six pack abs, wear something pink. People, who are not ‘elite’ know that you are not man enough but feminine.
The Chennai Men, who are reluctant to break away from the dull coloured t-shirts, and who are new to the culture of beauty parlour-visiting men will always find such a change in lifetsyle unique, difficult and unacceptable. Some men even find it below the normal standards of manliness for a man to wear a neckwear aroud his neck. And pink is simply unthinkable! And you talk to them about the metrosexual concept that is fast catching up in other metros in India, they laugh. Not because they find it funny, but because of their inability to comprehend the idea, as their minds are well attuned to the fashion of dull, colourless, faded t-shirts and worn out jeans.
In a misinformed and homophobic city like Chennai, most often metrosexual men are seen with contempt and branded gay, exhibiting city’s obnoxious attitude towards minority sexuality people and endangering people’s freedom of choice. In a time, where the metros and mini metros in India are leaping forward towards lesser stereotypical gender identities among people, Conservative Chennai simply refuses to catch up with the trend. The city, entrenched in its conventional attitudes towards women still continues to possess an eteranl belief in a strong distinction between masculinity and femininity.
Chennai’s understadnig of sexuality is simple. It doesn’t bother too much about the nuances of the complexity of a person’s choice of sexuality. Men with neckwear are considered feminine and so gay. Men who are pro-women rights are unmanly because they understand women better. So are they gay! The underlining contemptuous attitude of the city towards not just women but also towards unconventional men, and people with alternate choice of sexuality is clearly evident from these perspectives.
When all the other cities had a rally for LGBT rights, Pride March, Chennai remained silent. This proves that when all the other cities atleast take some efforts to break away from stereotypical notions, staunch Chennai simply refuses to budge in. As a result, Chennai has become a haven for narrow-minded people. Even people from other cities and countries who feel comfortable with the city are mostly those who resonate with city’s ideas on gender identities.
Even the most stylish men and women, who are elite and snobbish, reflect city’s conventional ideas on the distinction and inequality between men and women. Hence, they feel connected to the city. When other cities are taking a stride to move beyond gender stereotypes, Chennai will still be a silent spectator clinging on to its century-old ideas and continue to smother its denizens.
The class and caste conscious Chennai is unique in one of its cultural aspects. Unanimously, people from various classes agree to the city’s gender stereotypes, and anyone breaking away from these stereotypes will be laughed at. Everyday life is really exciting and challenging in Chennai, if you are a non-conformist, no matter which part of the social stratum you belong to! The only difference being the way you are being laughed at. The so called ‘elite’ class term pinkish man to be ‘gay’ish. They wonder, how could a macho man, with his six pack abs, wear something pink. People, who are not ‘elite’ know that you are not man enough but feminine.
The Chennai Men, who are reluctant to break away from the dull coloured t-shirts, and who are new to the culture of beauty parlour-visiting men will always find such a change in lifetsyle unique, difficult and unacceptable. Some men even find it below the normal standards of manliness for a man to wear a neckwear aroud his neck. And pink is simply unthinkable! And you talk to them about the metrosexual concept that is fast catching up in other metros in India, they laugh. Not because they find it funny, but because of their inability to comprehend the idea, as their minds are well attuned to the fashion of dull, colourless, faded t-shirts and worn out jeans.
In a misinformed and homophobic city like Chennai, most often metrosexual men are seen with contempt and branded gay, exhibiting city’s obnoxious attitude towards minority sexuality people and endangering people’s freedom of choice. In a time, where the metros and mini metros in India are leaping forward towards lesser stereotypical gender identities among people, Conservative Chennai simply refuses to catch up with the trend. The city, entrenched in its conventional attitudes towards women still continues to possess an eteranl belief in a strong distinction between masculinity and femininity.
Chennai’s understadnig of sexuality is simple. It doesn’t bother too much about the nuances of the complexity of a person’s choice of sexuality. Men with neckwear are considered feminine and so gay. Men who are pro-women rights are unmanly because they understand women better. So are they gay! The underlining contemptuous attitude of the city towards not just women but also towards unconventional men, and people with alternate choice of sexuality is clearly evident from these perspectives.
When all the other cities had a rally for LGBT rights, Pride March, Chennai remained silent. This proves that when all the other cities atleast take some efforts to break away from stereotypical notions, staunch Chennai simply refuses to budge in. As a result, Chennai has become a haven for narrow-minded people. Even people from other cities and countries who feel comfortable with the city are mostly those who resonate with city’s ideas on gender identities.
Even the most stylish men and women, who are elite and snobbish, reflect city’s conventional ideas on the distinction and inequality between men and women. Hence, they feel connected to the city. When other cities are taking a stride to move beyond gender stereotypes, Chennai will still be a silent spectator clinging on to its century-old ideas and continue to smother its denizens.
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