Saturday, June 20, 2009

I Cant Think Straight.....or can I?

Leyla and Tala are your regular teenagers with eyes full of dreams, each going out with a 'nice' guy, each trying to break free of the rules and customs set forth by their respective families, each wanting to be independent, each trying to feel happy with their respective choices..... and then they discover each other. Even though it doesnt look like it, you can feel the sparks between them. The friendship that follows is deep, sensitive and unsure. Each tries to pass off her feelings for the other under the guise of friendship. Until one night when the dam of repressed feelings they have built around themselves breaks and love is all there is. If this were any other movie, the story would end here, if this involved any other characters, the story would end here, if the world were perfect , the story would end here, but since its none of these things, the story does not end here. Tala does not have the courage to come out to her parents and embrace the love that has walked into her life. Leyla does. Ofcourse its not easy. And I wonder why?
Why is the world so unforgiving to homosexuals? Why is there so much stigma attached to living like who you really are? Why is it a sin for a woman to love another woman or for a man to feel for another man? What is it we fear about these relationships? How is it that love between a man and a woman is pure while that between two people of the same sex is not? How is it that a man and a woman can hold hands, kiss in public while a same sex couple needs to stay 'in the closet'? How is it that parents support their child when he/she wants to get married to a guy/girl of his/her dreams but pull away when their child comes out to them? Why are we so afraid of accepting those that are a bit different from us? Why do we shun them to a life of humiliation? Why do they have to rally and fight for the rights that are due them as humans? What have they done to deserve our hatered and fear? Is it the fact that they love someone from thir own sex? Is that even a fault? Is our society not plagued by worse things? Rapes? Murders? How can anyone lable love as being impure?
Saying "its a sin" is not enough. Not anymore. We cannot push all the responsibility on religion or God. God does not hate his children. He has made us what we are - dark or fair, short or tall, male or female, straight or homosexual. God does not discriminate between his children, I dont care what anyone claims the Bible or the Gita or the Quran says, all I know is He would NEVER shun his children. Its about time we see these relationships as what they really are, beautiful. Love is not something you can control. It is not something you can limit or chain within the boundries of sex, age or caste. Its a feeling you can feel for anyone and its not fair that some celebrate their bond with the world while others have to hide it. Its not fair that one kind of love is pure while the other kind is labelled a sin. Loving another human being cannot be sinful. It doesnt matter if the one you love is a guy or a girl, what matters is the feeling.
Homosexuals are not different from me or you. They too are humans, they too have feelings, they too cry when they are hurt, they have people they love, people they call family. The only difference is , their families rarely ever do what famillies are supposed to do....support them. Stand with them when the world is against them, hold their hands when they need support, lend them a shoulder when they need to cry. This has to change, this needs to change. We need to teach our children the qualities of equality and tolerance. Just like its important to tolerate each others faith, so also it is important to tolerate each others sexuality. Let us stop behaving like brutes and punishing our fellow human beings, let us be humans again. Let us open our hearts and eyes to those a little different than us. The love they share with their partners is not sin. Let us not degrade their relationship by calling it dirty or bad. Its as pure a feeling as you or me can experience.
As for Leyla and Tala, they do get together ..........you guys should watch I Cant Think Staright. Its one of those few movies that knows how to handle an issue sensitively. This is the first lesbian movie I have watched and I was touched. It has been very well delivered and the chemistry between the lead characters is amazing. I would recommend this movie very highly to those who like quality cinema with good content. In fact, I think this movie should be shown to as many people as possible, maybe after watching this, they will be able to think straight.

Image courtsey Music Hills

7 comments:

  1. I can see a slow change toward acceptance in this country...like anything else it's an ignorance that makes intolerance survive...
    I agree it's wrong to think of it as a sin...there are instances of it in the animal kingdom...My brother-in-law is gay...have known him since he was 9 years old and he definitely was born with this human trait.
    Education is the answer...The jugemental people usually can't overlook the "flamboyancy" of a few...which makes it hard for all others.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You have done justice to the topic .
    I think the society and a family - as a part of it, try to base their framework on the stories of religious texts.It is human psychology to blindly accept that everything is "perfect".They try to overlook that what doesn't fit their definition of "perfect".Thats how the whole society decides right- wrong, good- bad, or in this case 'normal - 'abnormal' (as they call it). Eventually they start hating that what doesnt fit in their mentally set standards of "norms".
    History stores evidence of how homosexuals, leprosy patients, Jews were treated. The society fears. It doesn't like that what is not in the majority.It likes to stay safe from the fears deep within.
    Our society doesn't have courage to understand different religions , races and live peacefully.
    Ugly, obese , poor, demented, people who dont have a perfect family doesnt fit societys definition of "perfect" .
    Till Shrek all the animated movies were perfect fairy tales. "Why are there no ogres in fairy tales?" A girl is always taught to like "Prince Charming". She has to be taught! So that the society will accept her!
    We need to change this. The society needs to understand - they will never understand until they have the courage to face truth.

    ReplyDelete
  3. @ Wanda: I absolutely agree with you! Education is indeed the answer. Things are a lot better in the west, in Indian society and also in Asia I think, I don't see any signs of anything near to acceptance yet. The Indian law has criminalized homosexuality and nobody seems keen to modify the situation. Its sad really

    ReplyDelete
  4. @ 2dayswriter: Very well put! As usual you have thought a lot about the topic and your comment clearly reflects that! Thank you. I am glad you think I have done justice to the issue. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. 1st of all its good to read ur post after such a long time....
    uve written abt a very sensitive topic,and i think uve done full justice.there are some things tht ppl shud understand and accept it as it is and not try to change it.we talk abt being modern and being open minded but it is all hidden under the term cld hippocracy.i strongly believe tht homosexuals shud be given equal rights and not be treated inferior to anybody else.i m glad tht there r ppl like u who still think like this and try to change other ppl's opinion and views thru ur post keep it up.
    as far as indian society is concerned they will never approve homosexuals in their societies cos they want kids,they want to carry fwd their family name as if they r the emperors of ind and they hv to carry on their family name for 1000 more yrs to come.i wonder y is their so much of ignorance in our society?and its even more frustrating wen educated ppl behave like this.and i also strongly believe tht gay marriages shud be legal all around the world ...cos ppl get married to the opp sex just cos of their family n social pressure and ruin the other persons life(ive seen such a case myself)common ppl get a life and accept the situation.i watched the movie and i really think its a gr8 movie and i recommend all the readers of this blog to see tht movie!

    ReplyDelete
  6. @ Sweety: Glad to know you think like that. we really need people like you and todayswriter who are accepting of other peoples beliefs and their ways of life. You are absolutely right to say that homosexuals should not be treated as inferior to anyone. I believe they have as much a right to happiness as you and me. They have the right to live with the person they love, to spend their life with the person they want to. They are human too and we should never forget that ever human needs love. Its about time we learnt to accept this and embrace this aspect of humanity as well. I would love to see the day we all live like humans and accept everyone. I have immense respect for homosexuals, more so for the ones who come out. It takes more than just guts to take the world head on, especially when you know that there's a slim chance your family will support you. Being ready to lose everything you have just to stand up for the one you love is more than just commendable. Love can indeed make you do wonderful things!

    ReplyDelete
  7. wonderful post.cant wait to watch the muvee!

    ReplyDelete

Lemme know what you think........after all..... Every Opinion Counts! :)