Tag: Mental Health | Page 6

This photograph shows the author on stage enacting an Odissi ‘abhinaya’ to a popular song ‘To Lagi Gopa Danda’. She is in a kneeling posture with the right knee touching the floor and the other folded (‘abhanga’ posture); she has her arms in a wide open stance with hands placed squarely on the knees and torso tilted to the right; her gaze is fixated to her left, away from the camera. Against a dark stage background, she looks resplendent in a deep red saree, silver ornaments and headgear traditional to the Odissi dance form. With eyes highlighted strikingly with kohl, she has a bright smile as she performs the act with grace. Photo credit: Kaushik Mukherjee

Dance, My Story Dec '18

For that balancing act on stage and in life

By Dr. Subhamita Maitra

Dr. Subhamita Maitra on the power of dance to rejuvenate body and mind

This illustration is a combination of a photograph of the author Sujoy and one of his quotes extracted from the article. In the photograph (to the left of the illustration), Sujoy can be seen standing with his crutches (partially visible) against a wall covered with a climbing plant. He has his face slightly turned away from the camera, with a gentle smile and distant look in his eyes. He is wearing a full-sleeved ‘kurta’, magenta in colour. Tattoos on his chest are partially visible through the collar of the ‘kurta’. This is a day time photograph. The accompanying quote says: “Let’s talk about confidence. It may not guarantee success but may well keep you motivated towards it. It can contribute big time in bringing positivity into your lives. It was no different for me. Financial independence did boost my confidence, which helped me accept my disability and queerness. I realized if I was comfortable with myself, I could expect others to come closer.” Photo courtesy Sujoy

My Story Sep '18

Awakening disabled desires

By Sujoy

Coming out of self-victimization helped Sujoy discover a whole new sexual world

This visual is a collection of six photographs that show different scenes from the symposium ‘Queering Mental Health’ organized at Seva Kendra Calcutta Training Centre on August 4, 2018 as ‘Varta’ webzine’s fifth birthday event. The photographs are placed in a grid. Clockwise from top left: Varta literature on display at the symposium; panellists Sudha Jha and Kaushik Gupta; audience interaction during the symposium – a young woman asks a question as other participants look on; panellists Dr. Madhurima Ghosh, Shilpi Banerjee, Shampa Sengupta and Mohit Ranadip; panellists Dr. Chilka, Dr. L. Ramakrishnan, Rituparna Borah and Sayan Bhattacharya; and ‘Varta’ birthday cake – a heart shaped cake with red gleaming icing all over, a “Happy Birthday” plastic prop placed on the top surface, and Varta’s name and a smiley drawn out in yellow icing just below the prop. The photograph of the cake takes up maximum space in the grid, with other equal sized photographs placed above it and to its right. Photo credits: Jia Mata (first two and the last photograph) and Kaushik Gupta (remaining photographs).

Happenings, Insight Aug '18

Symposium on queering mental health

By Jia Mata

Jia Mata was at 'Varta’s' 5th birthday event focussed on queer perspectives on mental health

This photograph shows a queer community vigil organized in Chennai during the Supreme Court hearings on Section 377, Indian Penal Code from July 10-17, 2018. Eight individuals, most of them transgender women, are seated on the floor or on chairs inside a hall like room. They are holding up rainbow pride flags and placards in English and Tamil that say “No 377”. Behind them is a large rainbow pride banner that is spread across the width of the room. In the right corner of the photograph we can see a video camera recording the proceedings. In the background, the entrance to the hall can be seen as well as a reception counter near the entrance. Photo credit: Jaya Sahodaran

Vartanama Jul '18

Birthday fervour?

By Pawan Dhall

It’s a momentous occasion for 'Varta' to turn five and also government’s silly season on queer issues

Vartanama Jun '18

For your well-being!

By Pawan Dhall

Varta’s online locator for queer friendly health and legal aid service providers is formally launched!

In this photograph, a midday event is taking place on the pavement outside Kamala Girls’ High School in South Kolkata on March 19, 2018 to protest the incidents in the school and the West Bengal Education Minister’s comments on the matter. A street play is in progress. The main actor dressed in a ‘kurta’, pair of jeans, slippers and a ‘dupatta’ can be seen holding a tambourine in their hands and addressing the audience. About a dozen people, standing around at some distance from the actor, are watching. To the right of the photograph, facing the actor, are two individuals holding a placard in part Bengali, part English: “Samakami aami, bhalobasha aami. Shame Education Minister!” (So what if I’m homosexual, my love has meaning. Shame Education Minister!). Behind the placard holders is the school building and a part of the closed school gate can also be seen. The name of the school is written on an arched board above the gate. In the forefront, the photograph shows someone holding a mobile phone and recording a video of the play. Large trees, school buses, people sitting on platforms under the trees, and a building adjacent to the school make up the background. Photo credit: Pawan Dhall

Insight May '18

To school, with fear . . . of confessions!

By Jia Mata, Sudha Jha, Nikita Kabra

Jia Mata, Nikita Kabra and Sudha Jha report on the recent homophobic violation of child rights in the Kamala Girls' High School incident involving the school's headmistress and the West...

This visual shows a portion of the poster designed for Kolkata screenings of the film ‘The Little Girls We Were . . . And the Women We Are’. The poster text says: “RAHI Foundation presents ‘The Little Girls We Were . . . And the Women We Are’ – Five Indian women survivors of incest and child sexual abuse share their journey from abuse to recovery. A poignant blend of personal testimonies, information and expert comments, this film gives the message of hope and recovery to survivors.” The text is accompanied with two visuals from the film. One of them shows a woman writing something in a diary – the camera is behind her and we can see the back of her head, neck and shoulders. There is a tattoo with stars and some text painted on the back of her neck. The second visual shows a hand holding a piece of paper burning – there is writing on the paper, not fully visible but possibly talking about the sense of shame that victims of incest or child sexual abuse often feel. Poster visual courtesy RAHI Foundation

Vartanama Mar '18

Little women versus patriarchy – and the winner is . . .

By Pawan Dhall

Morning newspapers are all about marvelling with horror at the survival challenges we as a deeply unequal society throw at our girls and women. And then I marvel some more...

This graphic consists of pencil sketches on paper in caricature form of the faces of key actors from the films discussed in the accompanying article. The sketches are presented in two rows, one above the other. In the first row are Alia Bhatt, Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan; in the second Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, Amitabh Bachchan and Manoj Bajpai. The background is made up of handwritten repeat text consisting of the names of the films – ‘Aligarh’, ‘Dangal’, ‘Dear Zindagi’, ‘Kahaani 2’, and ‘Pink’. The text is in all capitals but in small point size, and seems to form an intricate pattern on which the sketches of the faces are placed. Graphic credit: Shubhrajit Roy

Cinemascope, Insight Nov '17

Cinema, commerce and causes

By Nitin Karani

Campaigns to highlight different human rights issues are just past, ongoing or round the corner. Last year saw a spate of Bollywood films on many of these issues. How true...

Word cloud roughly in the shape of a diamond to highlight the issues talked about in the article below. There is key emphasis on the word ‘vigilance’, which stands out in big point size and red colour in the centre. Other words, all in blue or red colour, include ‘criticism’, ‘diversity’, ‘gender’, ‘health’, ‘law’, ‘legislation’, ‘medication’, ‘mental’, ‘policy’, ‘rules’, ‘sexuality’, ‘standards’, ‘therapy’ and ‘transgender’. Graphic credit: Pawan Dhall

Vartanama Sep '17

What price vigilance?

By Pawan Dhall

A new media acquaintance wondered what the focus of this issue’s editorial would be. He was sure I would write about journalist Gauri Lankesh's murder. Well, he wasn’t wrong.

Creations, Poetry Jul '17

How do you feel?

By Suchetana Sengupta, Siddhartha Sankar

Resources Jun '17

Collective action against child sexual abuse

By RACSHA

Rise Against Child Sexual Harm and Abuse (RACSHA), a new Kolkata-based network, completed one year on June 3, 2017. A look at their profile, the issues they deal with, and...

Insight, Policy Matters Jun '17

Sex talk for people with psychosocial disabilities

By Shampa Sengupta

Shampa Sengupta, founder of Sruti Disability Rights Centre, argues that the sexual needs of persons with psychosocial disabilities must be addressed, and that there can be no one-size-fits-all approach to...

This main photograph shows a snapshot of a Bengali article titled ‘Chhaichapa Fire’ (Fire That Would Be Worthless to Try and Douse) by Sanjukta Basu published in ‘Ananda Bazar Patrika’ newspaper on April 3, 1999. The photograph shows a portion of the article text (including the headline), with a black and white sketch (by artist Debasish Deb) more or less centre stage. The sketch shows two women with long flowing hair and sharp facial features holding and looking at each other. A one-line article introduction below the sketch translates into “Homosexuals in the heart of the city are forming clubs to seek social acceptance, writes Sanjukta Basu”. The sketch may not be remarkable by many standards, but the article in question created quite a buzz in the queer activism circles in Kolkata in the late 1990s. It helped the city’s queer support groups reach out to thousands of individuals through letters and one-on-one meetings. Photo credit: Pawan Dhall

Commentary, From the Archives Jun '17

Memories in media outings (part 2)

By Pawan Dhall

In 'Kolkata’s Queer Movement: A Recollection of Media Outings – Mid-1984 to Mid-2013' Pawan Dhall remembers his personal queer-story over the years

This main graphic highlights the phenomenon of intoxication playing a role in the occurrence of consent violations. It depicts that free consent (for sex or any other aspect) is not possible to give if a person is intoxicated. The text in the graphic says ‘Consent Violations!’ It shows a Clip Art graphic of a glass of wine tilted to the left. The glass has a small amount of alcohol in it, with an olive floating in it. The word ‘consent’ is shown to overlap the circular rim of the glass from the left. The glass is funnel-shaped with a long stem and circular base. The funnel shape of the glass reads like a giant ‘V’ and it acts as the first letter of the word ‘violations’ that is placed to the right of the glass. The letters of the word ‘consent’ are in red, while the letters of the word ‘violations’ are in black with a white outline. The wine glass sketch is done in light grey-green, and is super-imposed on a black rectangle with a thick green border (implying boundaries of consent). The entire graphic is placed on a background in tinges of white, light blue and golden yellow. The text is written using Word Art. Graphic credit: Pawan Dhall

Advice - Mind Body and Family Jun '17

On consent accidents!

By Pompi Banerjee

The law may be flat-out on what constitutes sexual consent, but a mental health lens offers a different perspective on the issue. Psychologist Pompi Banerjee explains

Word cloud in the shape of a thought blurb on the theme of the new mental health legislation – it includes words like ‘advance directives’, ‘choice’, ‘dignity’, ‘insurance’, ‘LGBTIQ’, ‘mental health’, ‘legislation’, ‘quality’, ‘suicide’ and ‘treatment’. Graphic credit: Pawan Dhall

Insight, Policy Matters Apr '17

New mental health law: Act of dignity?

By Pallav Bonerjee

Pallav Bonerjee assesses India’s brand new mental health legislation, the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017. The spring of 2017 brought along with it much needed relief and cause for celebration for...

Happenings Dec '16

Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 is a reality!

By Disability rights organizations in India

Persons with disabilities in India and organizations fighting to uphold their rights have gained a new legal recourse for equity and justice. Excerpts from a media release issued by All...

Tagged Under: Mental Health

For that balancing act on stage and in life

Awakening disabled desires

Symposium on queering mental health

Birthday fervour?

For your well-being!

To school, with fear . . . of confessions!

Little women versus patriarchy – and the winner is . . .

Cinema, commerce and causes

What price vigilance?

How do you feel?

Collective action against child sexual abuse

Sex talk for people with psychosocial disabilities

Memories in media outings (part 2)

On consent accidents!

New mental health law: Act of dignity?

Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 is a reality!

Queer Friendly Resources

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