Opinion India Grows Up

Some weeks ago,on a flight,I watched Milk,a film about the life of the American gay rights campaigner Harvey Milk. The film was about a remarkable man who fought for his beliefs with passion and joie de vivre and who died sadly young. The well-crafted film,with an Oscar-worthy performance by Sean Penn had been playing in cinema halls in Mumbai but I had missed it. I was glad for the opportunity to catch up. And yet,all through the engrossing film,particularly in the scenes depicting physical affection between Harvey and his lovers I couldn’t help feeling that there was something slightly illegitimate about the public viewing of this film.

The recent Delhi high Court judgment on Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code does away with the uneasy contradiction between social and legal acceptance. The judicial decision combined with the central government’s announcement of its intention to decriminalize homosexuality,is a significant step towards acceptance of same sex preferences. The joyous response of the gay community is understandable. For too long,the community has been stigmatized by society and subject to arbitrary and violent blackmail on the part of law enforcers. The act of decriminalization does away with a provision that is both archaic and unfairly discriminatory towards a section of citizens.

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But the event is a triumph not just for the gay community but for Indian society as a whole. For one it has forced open a debate on sexuality – an area of human life that we shy away from publicly discussing. Over the last two decades satellite television and multiplex films have pushed the envelope on sexual subjects in a manner that was never possible before. But the pictures of gay couples celebrating the judgment front paged in possibly every daily in the country last week sets a new benchmark for openness. And for a society that has routinely opted for vulgarity and covert acceptance of sexuality this is a major turning point.

Equally or perhaps more importantly the judgment and the government’s approach reflect an acceptance of difference. In a conservative society this is a bold stand to take and those in official positions who will support and stand by it are to be congratulated. One also hopes that this understanding and acknowledgment of alternatives translates into a tolerance of diversity in other areas — political,social and creative. After the long and turbulent season of intolerance that we have lived through this ruling comes as a welcome release.