LATEST IN INTERVIEWS
If parents spoke about it, children can learn more about sex than they do through porn: Aranya Johar
Updated on: 19 May, 2017 12:07 PM IST |
All of eighteen, Aranya Johar raked a storm on social media with her well-received and highly applauded verse, ‘The Brown Girl’s Guide to Gender’ that questioned male entitlement and patriarchy. A young student who hopes to contribute towards creating a better society and a better country at large, Aranya is extremely confident and pensive as she sits down for a quick chat with us.
How did this idea of poetry recitals in the dark stem from?
Aranya: It’s called Blind Poetry. The idea is that there won’t be any visuals in it. Why we started it is we wanted to give people who have never performed, a platform to come and perform without having to worry about stage fright or seeing people not respond to your piece. At the same time, we give glowsticks to the members in the audience. So, if someone likes your piece, they would wave their glowsticks. Hence, when you have an ocean of glowsticks flashing at you, it becomes really encouraging for the performer, and it motivates him to come and perform again. Apart from that, I feel to an extent, the way you look with reference to your socio-economic background impacts how people perceive your piece. But that doesn’t become a factor while you’re performing at Blind Poetry because people can only see a silhouette. So you’re praised and appreciated, only for your content. That’s why, Prachee Mashru and I curate Blind Poetry.
We hear you would like to pursue psychology or literature in college. How would you like to reach out to those silently suffering under depression and anxiety?
Aranya: I feel there is a large stigma around in getting help for mental health issues. One way we can change that is when we start talking about it and talking about it in a general sense while being more receptive towards it. Because there is a stigma, people cannot talk about it to their parents. They do not know how to get help. So when we encourage people to talk about it, they will be willing to open up about their issues. If we create a platform where we discuss avenues for people to get help, it won’t reach to a point like it did unfortunately for the 23-year old Mumbai student. If we take precautions, we can make India and our society better for people with mental health issues.
Do you think poetry recitals if made engaging can become a hub for people to socialize often?
Aranya: Absolutely, I think that has already begun. One reason I like performing poetry is that it starts a conversation. Whether my piece is liked or not, I get a stage and there is someone talking to me about it. I get another perspective if someone disagrees with my piece. Poetry creates a conversation and starts a dialogue and that is important. The minute you have a mic and you put a point across, it is taken with some amount of seriousness. Hence, age does not become a factor here while performing. People look at me for what I am saying. I feel it is reaching a point where people socialise through this and the good thing is that it is reaching a larger audience. It will reach a point where poetry will make a difference.
Considering how receptive is the current generation towards information, do you think that there should be more dialogue between parents and kids over social taboos?
Aranya: Absolutely. I come from a family where I am allowed to talk about normally stigmatised topics. I can talk about sex over a conversation at dinner. I can ask my mom about STDs. My parents are okay with the idea of LGBT. So I do realise that I have a privilege that a lot of people don’t. But I hope that parents realise that having these conversations will help children, with an opportunity to approach them for issues that they would like to talk about. They would get a clearer perspective than finding answers from the internet. If parents spoke about it, children can learn more about sex than they do through porn, or form their opinions better than what they come across through a Facebook post.
Your favorite written/read line?
Aranya: People will kill you with a small line, ‘Be realistic’. Because I really like the idea that everyone is telling you to be realistic but that is only going to lessen the chances of you doing crazy, good things. You need to believe that you can make things happen.
To listen to some of Aranya’s poems, visit our podcast section here.