By Manasi Nene
This new video by Vitamin Stree is a bold answer to the age-old question, “what were you wearing”. That phrase is about policing women and their right to dress the way they feel comfortable, rather than a legitimate attempt at a dialogue, if not effective solution, to sexual assault and violence.
The video features a spoken-word poem alongside a soundtrack, with some clever editing showing the women who need to respond to this question everyday, and the men who cause it to become such an issue.
Don’t get me wrong; nobody is claiming that all men are as weird and creepy as the ones in this video, and we know that. But everyday, just walking down the street, we come across far too many men who like making us uncomfortable. And then, to be blamed for wearing something that your aunty doesn’t like, is just extra jale mein namak. In response, there’s no way out other than become tough and frigid – to accept that whatever else we’re wearing, we’re also always wearing some perverted version of the male gaze.