What masculinity really means
This article explores the evolving definition of masculinity in India, citing a survey that suggests young men feel pressured by rigid societal expectations. It critiques traditional gender roles and calls for a more expansive, less aggressive vision of manhood.
Why it matters
It addresses the intersection of economic instability, youth mental health, and shifting cultural norms in modern India.
(This article is part of the Gender Agenda newsletter. To get the newsletter in your inbox every Sunday, subscribe here .)
Last week the internet was split, as usual, on what was served at the BRICS banquet hosted by the Prime Minister, with one group saying we are a meat-eating country with great food diversity, which had gone unrepresented. The meat-eating group also went on to talk about how if the PM had a wife the menu would have been better. One woman also said a diplomat’s wife would have done a stellar job of menu setting.
This gender-fication of roles – woman as menu-setter, man as diplomat – ties both genders to poles they may not want to be tethered to. Setting a menu or diplomacy are both skills that don’t come with little blue and pink tags attached to them.
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