chaktobarty; intimacy, "eve-teasing" and youth in india
TRANSCRIPT
Eve-teasing: Young people’s experiences in the urban slums (bustees) of Kolkata,
India
Kabita Chakraborty
Assistant Professor
Children’s Studies Program
Department of Humanities
York University
Children’s Studies Program
York UniversityToronto, Canada
Research in the bustees of Kolkata (2014-2016)
50 Young women and Men, aged 160-25
2 Communities side-by-side
2.5 km2 , 300, 000+ population
Muslim communities where purdah is practiced
Purdah in the bustees for young women:
Purdah in the in the bustees for young men:
Eve-Teasing as Timepass
In the bustees Eve-teasing as Timepass is linked to male early school leaving and high levels of unemployment;
For female youth not all boys practice eve-teasing as Timepass;
“It is the guys with no class [ghatiya] that timepass like that way [eve-tease]” (Reema, female, 21).
Eve-teasing: In Response to a Wounded Masculinity
“Sometimes you see them dressed up all hifi…maybe going to college …I would say ‘hi, why are you dressed up so’…We know she is going to college…who knows what she is doing there, why does she need to dress this way? She should remember her izzat (honour)”. (Rizwan, male, 20).
Roadside Romeo
“It is not like if you spend 2 hours everyday standing in front of the school…who can do that? (because) it’s not like you are wearing your sunglasses and watch and belt everyday like that”. (Samshaad, male 24)
Eve-Teasing leading to Love
Where are you? Have you forgotten about me? I haven’t see you for 3 days, are you mad at me or have you found someone else? I love you so much, please return. Inshallah I only hope you have gotten a job, and in which case, please inform me. I’ll return to the bus stand every day until I see you.
(Love letter from Mumtaz, female 17 to Saif, male 21, 2013)
One-Sided Love
“Bechara; one-sided ho jata…”
Afroz, female, 18
“Girls want to be teased, I’ve seen them when they give you a look so that you will tease them. If I was good looking then they’d respond to me…the good looking guys always get responded to”. (Lucky, male, 19)
“…it’s not like we have so many places to meet and discuss, but on the streets how do we know he is serious, not just trying his luck with every single girl that passes by? How can we tell if he is genuine or not? How can we tell if he is safe or not? ” (Rinki, female, 17)
Ongoing ResearchContext: High levels of anti-eve teasing activism
coming from different state and civil society actors, often highly class and status specific
In this activism, youth who use eve-teasing are “bad” and those who need it as a gateway to romance are “backwards”
Narratives of eve-teasing needs to be considered from a youth-centred perspective, particularly in communities where premarital mixed-sex interactions are not the norm.
Thank You
Kabita Chakraborty
Assistant Professor
Children’s Studies Program
Department of Humanities
York University
Children’s Studies Program
York UniversityToronto, Canada