Thanks Alice, great article and I hope you enjoyed your trip. My family is from Bihar and although now resident in London, we have a farm in northern Bihar and it is fascinating to see the changes that are taking place every visit, although there is still so much to do. The rising female empowerment in this part of India will hopefully not only reduce poverty, but also the massive gender imbalances that occur with regards to things like access to education, jobs and even inheritance:
This is one of your best posts ever (which is saying a lot). "Culture is malleable, and there’s plenty of scope for ideological persuasion." But: "Charismatic storytelling is most appealing if it resonates with a community’s core values." Yes, exactly.
I'll give you another example: Thailand produces a _lot_ of TV dramas about gay and lesbian relationships ("boy's love"/BL and "girl's love"/GL respectively). In the US and many other countries, narratives involving LGBTQ relationships are often transgressive and oppositional, featuring characters who are rejected by their families of birth and reject them in turn, after which they establish new quasi-family relationships ("found families") with other LGBTQ individuals, operating outside the bounds of conventional society.
That is _not_ how Thai GL dramas work. (I can't speak to BL series.) Instead the typical pattern is that a woman falls in love with another woman, then meets with opposition from one of her parents or grandparents, who wants her to marry a man. (Sometimes this is a previously-arranged marriage.) Rather than fleeing the family, the woman submits and promises to fulfill her familial obligations as a daughter or granddaughter. The parental figure previously in opposition then has a change of heart, often prompted by intervention by another more sympathetic parental figure or by a tragic turn of events, and blesses the relationship.
Some of the people producing these dramas are explicit in their intent to promote political change and social acceptance of LGBTQ individuals. As I wrote in a blog post ("The end of GAP") about the popular drama that kicked off the current wave of GL series, and that follows the narrative template above: "It’s an approach that [the producers of 'GAP: The Series'] presumably thought was most likely to be successful in the context of Thai society: to emphasize the loyalty of LGBTQ+ Thais to that society and its traditional norms of respect and deference, and to ask in turn for themselves to be recognized as full and equal members of society." And, what do you know, Thailand recently legalized same-sex marriage.
I forgot to add the final kicker: The production company that produced the original GL drama "GAP: The Series" could not find sponsors for it, and had to self-fund it. That same production company has now been partially funded by the Thai Ministry of Commerce to produce another GL series, The Loyal Pin (available on YouTube), which features a lesbian relationship between members of the 1960s-era Thai nobility, and which follows the standard story template I discussed above. The Thai government is apparently doing this as part of a deliberate "soft power" strategy to promote Thai culture overseas, presumably including promoting Thailand as an LGBTQ-friendly society and tourist destination.
20% to 25% growth in LFPR over 5 years in urban India actually seems quite low, considering rural India LFPR grew from 23% to 41% - could be that urban India has a higher mean age and so possibly a lot of older generation, which were mostly single income families, but even then...
Have you seen Lapataa Ladies? It’s on Netflix, if you haven’t. It’s good crowd pleasing Bollywood film - not coding, but it’s about women from villages finding independence and their own selves
This is great news, especially girls and young women getting more education.
Now let us hope she does not meet a nice guy who also knows his way around a computer. He could be offered a job in the US and immigrate on an H-1B visa. His equally talented and experienced wife will become an H-4. Which means she will lose most of her just-fought independence. She will be cooking and cleaning just like her mom, her grand-mom, and those before her.
She will discover her life has little value in the US. Despite all the academic babble about emancipation, women's rights, equal opportunity, economic freedom, and all of that.
Hi. Have you seen Lapata Ladies ? Have a look. It’s something that you are looking for. Loved reading your essay. Thanks.
Yes!! I loved Lapaata ladies!! Fantastic film!
I liked it a lot too. But I came across this review. It would be nice if you can tell how it makes you feel about the movie.
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/prerna-subramanian-phd-134068103_laapataaladies-activity-7197827253643182081-UJHU/
Alice pls watch Mrs. On Amazon. It’s heart wrenching until we come to the end of it where it simply lifts the soul.
Thanks Alice, great article and I hope you enjoyed your trip. My family is from Bihar and although now resident in London, we have a farm in northern Bihar and it is fascinating to see the changes that are taking place every visit, although there is still so much to do. The rising female empowerment in this part of India will hopefully not only reduce poverty, but also the massive gender imbalances that occur with regards to things like access to education, jobs and even inheritance:
https://amito.substack.com/p/female-empowerment-coming-to-save?r=11ovd6
Thanks. 8285851560. Thats is my contact number in case he would want to call me.
Wonderful! Thank you for reaching out.
This is one of your best posts ever (which is saying a lot). "Culture is malleable, and there’s plenty of scope for ideological persuasion." But: "Charismatic storytelling is most appealing if it resonates with a community’s core values." Yes, exactly.
I'll give you another example: Thailand produces a _lot_ of TV dramas about gay and lesbian relationships ("boy's love"/BL and "girl's love"/GL respectively). In the US and many other countries, narratives involving LGBTQ relationships are often transgressive and oppositional, featuring characters who are rejected by their families of birth and reject them in turn, after which they establish new quasi-family relationships ("found families") with other LGBTQ individuals, operating outside the bounds of conventional society.
That is _not_ how Thai GL dramas work. (I can't speak to BL series.) Instead the typical pattern is that a woman falls in love with another woman, then meets with opposition from one of her parents or grandparents, who wants her to marry a man. (Sometimes this is a previously-arranged marriage.) Rather than fleeing the family, the woman submits and promises to fulfill her familial obligations as a daughter or granddaughter. The parental figure previously in opposition then has a change of heart, often prompted by intervention by another more sympathetic parental figure or by a tragic turn of events, and blesses the relationship.
Some of the people producing these dramas are explicit in their intent to promote political change and social acceptance of LGBTQ individuals. As I wrote in a blog post ("The end of GAP") about the popular drama that kicked off the current wave of GL series, and that follows the narrative template above: "It’s an approach that [the producers of 'GAP: The Series'] presumably thought was most likely to be successful in the context of Thai society: to emphasize the loyalty of LGBTQ+ Thais to that society and its traditional norms of respect and deference, and to ask in turn for themselves to be recognized as full and equal members of society." And, what do you know, Thailand recently legalized same-sex marriage.
That is an extremely nice example!! YES! Showing that LG still conform to cherished ideals. Thank you!!
I forgot to add the final kicker: The production company that produced the original GL drama "GAP: The Series" could not find sponsors for it, and had to self-fund it. That same production company has now been partially funded by the Thai Ministry of Commerce to produce another GL series, The Loyal Pin (available on YouTube), which features a lesbian relationship between members of the 1960s-era Thai nobility, and which follows the standard story template I discussed above. The Thai government is apparently doing this as part of a deliberate "soft power" strategy to promote Thai culture overseas, presumably including promoting Thailand as an LGBTQ-friendly society and tourist destination.
ahhh! move over K-pop, it's Thai-Q-Pop
A daughter's earnings are considered poison.
The communities eating off their daughters are basically engaged in prostitution.
You either trade your body or your youth as a woman.
Marriage is the only legitimizer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqIQfszVQJ0
Chulha girl isn't appropriate word...I guess...it shows how menial work we think it is to do household works.. otherwise nice work 🙂
Hey, can you please connect me with Amit? I would love to write about these young ladies.
Nootan.sharma@theprint.in
This is my email address
Absolutely, I've asked him to contact you! Thank you
Hey Elice, can you please connect me with Amit? I would love to write about these young ladies! Would be a great help.
nootan.sharma@theprint.in
This is my email address.
20% to 25% growth in LFPR over 5 years in urban India actually seems quite low, considering rural India LFPR grew from 23% to 41% - could be that urban India has a higher mean age and so possibly a lot of older generation, which were mostly single income families, but even then...
Have you seen Lapataa Ladies? It’s on Netflix, if you haven’t. It’s good crowd pleasing Bollywood film - not coding, but it’s about women from villages finding independence and their own selves
This is great news, especially girls and young women getting more education.
Now let us hope she does not meet a nice guy who also knows his way around a computer. He could be offered a job in the US and immigrate on an H-1B visa. His equally talented and experienced wife will become an H-4. Which means she will lose most of her just-fought independence. She will be cooking and cleaning just like her mom, her grand-mom, and those before her.
She will discover her life has little value in the US. Despite all the academic babble about emancipation, women's rights, equal opportunity, economic freedom, and all of that.
Just not for her. Not for any H-4.