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On my bad days I feel like a sheep disguised in the clothing of fox who knows how to hunt her prey or at least have an idea where to aim. I feel like an imposter who cannot tell her head from toe but is still poised and feigning as a person who has got herself in clear and is embarking an incredible journey. I make my life sound so riveting when in reality I have absolutely no idea about what I am doing and everything appears so whimsy. Maybe it is the unconditional support from my beloved that spoils me or maybe they just say those things to be nice to me because honestly, I do not sound like the person to be in awe of. Every time I look in the mirror the face that stares back at me is of a person who is still doubting the road she has chosen and often looking back to the two diverging roads in the yellow woods and think that maybe the path less travelled upon is not for her. I ask myself, what is the meaning of living and why everything is defined by my ominous future. I have absolutely no desire to get out of my bed, much less to make a name for myself. There is nothing I look forward to doing and lately I have been feeling that everything I do in the name of my passion is being done to keep up my appearances in public. I am not a model kid or student and honestly that façade is now starting to crumble through the cracks of exhaustion. Each day I am waking up and carrying on with the day half-heartedly just so I am not the black sheep of the society. I did this yesterday and today, but tomorrow... Submitted by: Mridula Uppal Student at Shaheed Bhagat Singh College

The film stars Kajol, Tanvi Azmi and Mithila Palkar, and revolves around a dysfunctional family of three women and their unconventional life choices. The movie follows the journey of three generations of women who interact on a deeper level and find out disturbing details of their past when the eldest of the three, Nayan, falls into a coma and her daughter & granddaughter decide to contribute to her biography in making. Each of the three ladies is plagued by the males in their lives or has experienced difficulties as a result of the other. The protagonist in the story was a female who wanted to pursue her career in writing and was very passionate about it. She married to a guy who was supportive of her writings but the lady’s mother-in-law was against her decision to focus on her career. Although she got great recognition and appreciation through her writings but as she was not good in doing house hold chores her mother-in-law was upset from her. That is why she decided to leave her in laws house and separated from her husband. She took her children with herself and raised them as a single mother. Children’s life without father was miserable but they coped up with that. The protagonist’s second husband used to sexually harass the girl child because of which the children separated from their mother as well. Masha, Anu's daughter, describes how, despite her mother's tendency to be too protective, Anu's colourful character led to her being ridiculed at school as is often mentioned throughout the film, Anu is also separated from her mother, who is now in coma, for the same reason. Although the story showed family problems but the social issue raised here was very well portrayed. It shows the struggle a woman had to go through if she wants to pursue her career instead of focusing on home making. By the conclusion, all three ladies have realised how significant each of them is to their lives. What is the story based on? The movie Tribangha is based on the lives of single mothers and women in professions. Life of working women in a country like India where people think culturally and emotionally more, opposes the opinion of women having a career. India has from past several years a patriarchal society where women is being seen and expected to be dependent on men and if they try to make opinions and choices their voice is shunned. With the passage of time, we see development in our country and many men supporting their wives or women of their family or women in general to have a career and opportunities to grow. But still women have to seek moral support from men to believe in themselves. Without men’s approval it is hard for many women to get their choice of work done. Societal pressure, disapproval from in laws, taking care of children and lack of education are the major reasons of women not being able to have a career. From the day a girl is born, her education is planned in such an order that limits the scope of good career options and the boy child gets more opportunities for the obvious reasons, when these girls grow up, they are expected to earn less than the guy they are marrying which is not only a societal pressure on women but on men as well. And if they are earning more or even less than their to be husbands, they are expected and are asked to leave their jobs because who will take care of children then? And as soon as they stop earning the pressure goes to the men and they become the sole earner of the family and the poor women gets dependent on their husbands. Who likes to be dependent on anyone in this society? People know the cruelty they have to suffer, if the person they are dependent on takes advantages of it. Asking for money, asking for permissions and approvals to get their work done is liked by none but when you are dependent on someone financially then you must do it all. The story talks about single mothers as well. The protagonist in this movie had to divorce her husband to build her career. In the movie the single mother was well established and was able to provide her kids with all the basic amenities, but is it enough to have a good life. Only if husband of the protagonist would have supported her career choice, divorce would not have happened. But the women were expected to take care of the house instead of her passion, she was expected to do house chores and take care of the family. Isn’t this the role of everyone instead of just a woman? Even the children are affected by divorced parents. Living with one and leaving another parent, making a rock-hard choice in such a tender age can mentally affect the child as well. How the issue can be solved? It is a tough question to reply to but its never impossible. If the country is developing and people are adapting new technologies then why cannot they change their minds and thinking. Most basic solutions are to aware people not just men but women as well to get education, to speak up for themselves, to know about the laws and not to let anyone decide for them. One should not let this patriarchy rule them. Many government policies providing education should be implemented properly and should be in reach of people, because education plays the biggest role in developing minds and with mind development comes modern thinking. Acceptance should be there in men and they must be supportive to the women of their families. The campaigns to empower women are being run in the world should be supported, the campaign helps a lot in spreading awareness about problems suffered by women, its implications and how it can be corrected. The taboo that being a single mother is a curse, women focusing on their careers is a shame and they should stick to house needs to be eliminated, people should discuss about it in their day-to-day conversations. Submitted by: Khushi Vashisth Law Student at Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National Law University, Sonipat

The misery of the household The fortitude of the woman The durability of the children The amusement of the man. Breezes of humor and despair Entangling with suffering Malicious and treacherous Yet lays the woman in tranquil. Woman how powerful thy sting How pitiful you are to the world How bridal you are to your husband? How caring you are to your children? May friendship begets your heart with love May your sufferings begets greatness May your sorrows begets exultations May your endless trials bring surprises. Submitted by: Pallabi Paul Student at Department of Law, Assam University, Silchar

Submitted by: Shreyas A. Student at Dr. B R Ambedkar School of Economics University, Bengaluru

"I see no flaw in being different; A color has different shades, but all the shades find their own place and essence in a painting." Being provided with the same resources and same time limit, I want to add on more to what pre-exists. I want to live like an exception; Being someone, who others only think of becoming. I want to transform the 'if' and 'but', to 'will' and 'would.' I want to revive the art of 'living' and diminish the art of 'surviving'. They might call me out for being the way that I am, for they fail to enjoy the liberation I feel as I ink my thoughts which flow freely. I want to look beyond what’s given, because sometimes what lies latent has more depth to it. I want to experience the metamorphosis cycle I am meant to undergo, for I crave to understand what substance I am made up of. There are times where I waver in my heart and I get shrouded with doubt. But there are also times where I enjoy the uncertainty it brings and realise the power faith holds. There is a beauty to this imperfection, one which only makes me more of a human. If being different is a flaw then I would love to admire it as it sinks in, Because everything that feels real is flawed to beauty… flawed to perfection. Submitted by: Sneha Srivastava Student at Amity University, Lucknow

Submitted by: Aakanksha Goel Student at Dr. B.R. Ambedkar National Law University, Sonepat

She was a dreamer and he was a realist. He felt he was too dramatic at times, but his innocence caught her heart each time. While they sat silently under the open sky, appreciating the stars, his eyes fixed on that little bright speck of light in the dark expanse while hers, was fixed on him. He kept trying to focus on the stars to distract himself from the pain, as she patiently gazed at him, praying for him to heal. She then locked her eyes on the brightest star and then shut them close. Mumbled a small prayer. Slowly turning her head towards him she opened her eyes to find him smiling at her. He whispered, "Thank you for being here. I wish I could tell you how much this means to me." She blushed, lowered her gaze for a second, and then chuckled, "Tell me!" His eyes were confused. Before he could frame his thoughts, she demanded again, "Tell me how much it means," and a bright smile stretched across her countenance. He blushed. Uttered some confused words. And then smiled and hung his head. She stood up with a jump. Excited and charged. She pulled him up and held him close. Overwhelmed, he agreed. His heart fluttered with mixed emotions. She had successfully distracted him from his pain. Forgetting that the wound exists helps one heal faster. A week later, they met again. Their emotions held firm in their hands. She had a book wrapped in her arms across her chest and he held an envelope behind his back. He looked at the book with admiration and his cheeks drooped in embarrassment. They exchanged their little presents. She whispered, "Remember, it is just the highlighted sentence," and gave a small smile. He was surprised to look at the book. He flipped pages to find a sticky note, a highlight, or underlining. But couldn't spot one. He flipped through the pages again and then for a third time. He could find nothing. His heart sank. Then he checked the last page. Tainted in pink with a corner doodle. 'I will do anything to make you happy for the rest of our days. I will never let you go. I will never give up on us." She had skilfully doodled a blushing teddy. His vision blurred as tears filled his eyes. He looked up at her. She was so lovingly engrossed in his present. A newspaper with endless highlights in different colors. She patiently read through each one of them. He had not highlighted sentences but random pairs of words that together conveyed adorable affection of his heart. The prettiest of those hundreds of words of appreciation was from the editorial. "Primary emotions are shared by all mammals including humans, but when around specific individuals, a significant emotional interplay is established, including high sympathetic activity which with time has become of significant importance and the fear of losing is not affordable." It was cute how the nerdy head had put in all his efforts to convey his heart's emotions. Who could have ever imagined that a news report can even be so heart-warming when scattered pairs of words are brought together with pure intention! She, the dreamer could not help but be immensely touched by his act of kindness. It was their kind of love language that is the most beautiful, yet, no longer practiced. Their eyes locked, and they hugged, holding on to each other. Together, today, and for times to come. Submitted by: Shambhavi Anand Student at National Law Institute University, Bhopal

The Namesake is a 2003 novel by American author Jhumpa Lahiri, published by Houghton Mifflin. It was her debut novel that received positive critical appraisal. It was initially published in ‘The New Yorker’ before being expanded into a full-length novel. The novel that is set in three cities, namely Calcutta, Boston and New York City, went on to become a ‘New York times Notable Book’ as well as a ‘Los Angeles Times Book Prize’ finalist. The book was also adapted into a 2006 film of the same name directed by Mira Nair, starring actors Irrfan Khan, Tabu and Kal Penn in lead roles. It is an English-language drama writted by Sooni Taraporevala that was released in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and India. The story revolves around Gogol, the lead protagonist, and his experiences through life as he ventures into situations that bring him into internal conflicts because of his cross-cultural background. His parents, Ashoke Ganguli and Ashima Ganguli, are first generation immigrants in the United States. Lahiri explores various subplots throughout the novel but excels at keeping the primary subplot intact in the course of events. Some significant plot points are inspired by real-life experiences of the author, who has excellently stitched the thread of events in this contemporary fiction. Perhaps this is one of the many reasons why the story feels like a warm hug in multiple instances, especially from the perspective of an Indian. It is the simple details that are so quintessential to Indian culture but completely alien to the West, that when specifically mentioned, reminds us of them. The world of the Gangulis is set in 1960s America and is written from a third person perspective. The reader is a mere spectator into the world of the Gangulis, with no engagement whatsoever, but feeling every bit of it along the way. Apart from fiction readers in general, this book is likely to strike a note with first as well as second generation immigrants living in the West, or perhaps anywhere in the world but not their native country. Also, the simple language makes it suitable for all age groups. The story kicks off with Ashima and Ashoke’s wedding in 1960 Calcutta, shortly before they shift to Massachusetts. It is a conventional arranged marriage in a typical Bengali family. Ashoke is a postdoctoral engineering student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The author intricately portrays the struggles faced by Ashima in adjusting to this new lifestyle with a new person in a new city, a new country, away from home and family. The relationship between the two of them is also penned down in a realistic manner, one which most people of Indian origin would relate to as they are familiar with the concept of arranged marriage. The attempt at familiarizing the Western audience with this concept appears almost effortless, which makes it even better. Ashima eventually gets pregnant and her yearning for home during this period intensifies- especially the thought of delivering a child all alone in a foreign land with no family member present. This builds up to the primary plotline of the book, that is, the name of the child. As tradition follows, Ashima’s grandmother is supposed to suggest a name for the child but that never really pans out, as the grandmother dies and her letter never reaches Ashima and Ashoke. They end up naming the child Gogol after the Russian author Nikolai Gogol, a name that holds immense emotional significance for Ashoke. The reason behind it, as Gogol discovers later in life, I’ll leave for the readers to find out. What ensues thereafter is a development of an identity crisis leading to a conflict of culture and emotional distance within the household. The novel largely covers the formative years of Gogol’s life and him coming to terms with his identity as an intersection between the culture that he is born in and the culture that he is a part of. Ashoke comes across as a quiet person. He does not ever divulge much about himself. It does not make him an uninteresting character though, as Ashima beautifully complements his silences and reads in between the lines of her husband’s words. He is an honest and hardworking person and a dutiful family man. His fondness of Nikolai Gogol is connected with a train accident that nearly killed him. He had always been a reader, nevertheless. The novel spans roughly 30 years during which Ashima grows from a young timid mother to a mature middle-aged lady. Initially she naturally feels very disconnected from the foreign land and constantly craves the intimacy of home, the closeness of family and the comfort of familiarity. Ashima’s story is that of independence as she learns how to drive and live alone as Ashoke and the kids go to different cities for work and studies respectively. The most noteworthy trait of the author evident throughout the novel is her attention to detail and the words she uses to portray a particular setting. What is also apparent is that there is no specific beginning or end to the story. It picks up from one walk of life of and drops it at another, and despite that it achieves the purpose of the journey that it set out on. You do not feel like their world has somehow come to end as you finish reading the book. The art of words used by the author, doesn’t for a minute make any of the mundane daily life activities appear mundane- be it Gogol’s regular day at school or Ashima’s mornings in the kitchen or their dinner table conversations. In Bengali culture, a person usually has two names- a nickname to be used at home and a ‘good name’ to used formally. Both Ashoke and Ashima knew well that Gogol could not be used as their child’s good name and so came up with the name Nikhil. As a kid, Gogol seemed to like his name and insisted on keeping his name as it is. As he started growing up, however, things started to change. American peers at school would make fun of his name as it resembled words like ‘Giggle’ or ‘Gargle’. The additional snag of having a Russian name truly confounds and worsens the awkwardness of young Gogol as he navigates the intersection of Indian and American cultures. This inevitably leads him to despise his name so much so that he ends up legally changing his name to Nikhil before moving to college at 18. This is symbolic of him trying to build a new identity and starting afresh around a bunch of people who never knew that he had been called ‘Gogol’ for 18 years of his life. It is the beginning of him trying to distance himself from his natural culture that he always felt forced upon or perhaps did not really understand, and integrate himself with the American ways as much as he can. "It is as Nikhil ... that he grows a goatee, starts smoking Camel Lights at parties and, while writing papers and before exams, discovers Elvis Costello and Brian Eno and Charlie Parker"; While all of this is happening, though he couldn’t help but feel a deep rooted sense of betrayal- that Gogol has somehow let his parents down by becoming Nikhil. Gogol majors in architecture at Yale and later works as an architect in New York. He had three relationships: his first is with Ruth, his second is with Maxine, and his third is his marriage to Moushumi. Gogol and Moushumi have consistently shunned their Indian heritage and any ideas of being married to somebody of the same ethnicity. They are thrilled that they are "fulfilling a collective, deep-seated desire"; on the part of their families when they unexpectedly click on their first date. The romantic relationship between Gogol and each of the women is exquisitely detailed, down to the details of how they met, what brought them together, their passionate moments, and ultimately their anguish and estrangement. Gogol’s internalised conflicts cause him trouble in his romantic relationships as he struggles to find his way through them. Each of his romances unleash a new hidden piece of himself and bring him to confront an undiscovered part of his identity. The beauty of it all lies in the fact that most of us grow and develop, in or after a relationship and it is not something ground breaking. The author does not try to bring about a unique instance but rather incorporate nuanced layers within the ordinary. Gogol is closest to his sister Shonali aka Sonia and out of all the family members, she is perhaps his comfort person, his escape and his partner in crime. Both are alike in a lot of aspects as they try to fit in the two worlds inside and outside their home and possibly that is why they understand each other reasonably. Several works on Indian-Americans rely on the glitzy storylines of wealthy individuals, stable families, no divorce, Bollywood, music, yoga, and so forth. In The Namesake, Lahiri is unique because she acknowledges reality and the facts. Culture evolves, serving both protective and unifying purposes, but attempts to preserve it as the set traditions, through the adoption of ethnocentric and egocentric viewpoints makes a community regressive and leave the children in the dark. Ashima and Ashoke are first generation immigrants, who grew up in their native culture surrounded by family, and naturally that culture is inculcated in them over the years. Their heart lies in India and they have a deep sense of nostalgia for their life in Calcutta. Conflict only arises when they expect and demand the same from Gogol and Sonia, who were born and brought up in a completely different environment. Gogol and Sonia never liked their trips to Calcutta while it pained Ashima’s heart to think her kids are divorcing their culture and getting ‘Americanised’. While it's true that this book examines ideas like cultural identity, rootlessness, tradition, and familial expectations, as well as how names subtly (and not so subtly) affect how we see ourselves, it's greatly to its credit that it never falls victim to the clichés those themes so frequently entail. Instead, Lahiri transforms it into a tale about a guy and his family, about his life and hopes, loves, and sorrows. This is what makes, you, as a reader connect with the characters and feel what they’re feeling, with them. In conclusion, this book isn't just a good read for immigrants; it's also a beautifully written family saga with universal themes: love, the deep bond between a father and son, teenage angst, feeling pulled in two directions but not quite belonging in either, the unpredictability of life and relationships, and real (and occasionally unhappy) endings. Submitted by: Anushka Guha Student at NLU Odisha

Cinema has been one of the greatest influences in our modern lives, which is a form of art, the sventh art along with painting, sculpture, literature, architecture, play and music. It is important to know the difference between movies, film and cinema. Film is the technology, movie is the business and entertainment, and cinema is a synthesis of the three that focuses on aesthetics. Cinema, a visual art of story–telling with rich inputs of music, screenplay, cast and script that mirrors the contemporary society in which it functions. Cinema is the universal picture and concept that defines humanity. It captures a moment in time that can echo in eternity, with the right work and preservation. From emotional tragedies to candy-floss romances to adrenaline fused thrillers, cinema derives its sustenance, ideas and imaginations from all of its surroundings. It is not only a visual treat to its audience but it also an account of sociological, economic and political set up in which a person is living. Some people mistakenly associate cinema with entertainment and pleasure. Most people go to the ‘cinema’ because they want to have a good time. They want to forget the stress of their job or other worries in their lives and that’s one of the reasons why cinema is so important as an art form – it offers people a momentary escape from reality and their monotonous lives, regardless of what kind of content they’re watching but it is more than that. In the words of Jean-Luc Godard, “cinema is the most beautiful fraud in the world”. But for others, cinema a matter of identifying with the characters or a fascination with the craftsmanship that makes high-quality content possible. We love our movies, and for good reasons. Cinema is the only art form that allows us to identify with the characters on an emotional level. We see them as real people struggling with real problems and facing real challenges. We live vicariously through them and find in them our own personal fears and desires, hopes and aspirations. The wave of ‘Literally Me’ characters might be a suitable example of this. That is why we continue to watch movies and go to the movies, even when the next cool thing is just a click away and buying a movie ticket can cost more than a week’s grocery. We watch movies because they can make us experience moments that are outside our everyday lives. They allow us to step into the shoes of a soldier and witness the horrors of a war. They allow us to walk in the rain with a couple falling in love They offer us to fly a plane or drive a car at breakneck speeds. Films have the power to transport us from the time of prehistoric hunters and gatherers to futuristic space explorers. Films provide commonality among across all manners of divide. And they speak for those who do not have a voice. We watch movies because movies matter. They let us suspend our disbelief. They inspire us, scare us, make us laugh, cry, dream, question but most important of all, they make us empathise. Movies allows us an opportunity to look at human beings with all their flaws and still accept them for who they are. As one of the greatest film critics, Roger Ebert said, “We are all born with a certain package. We are who we are. Where we were born, who we were born as, how we were raised. We are kind of stuck inside that person, and the purpose of civilization and growth is to be able to reach out and empathize a little bit with other people, find out what makes them tick, what they care about. For me, the movies are like a machine that generates empathy. If it’s a great movie, it lets you understand a little bit more about what it’s like to be a different gender, a different race, a different age, a different economic class, a different nationality, a different profession, different hopes, aspirations, dreams and fears. It helps us to identify with the people who are sharing this journey with us. And that, to me, is the most noble thing that good movies can do and it’s a reason to encourage them and to support them and to go to them.” Cinema was about revelation, an aesthetic, emotional and spiritual revelation. It was about the complexity of characters and their contradictory and sometimes paradoxical natures, the way they could hurt one another and love one another and suddenly come face to face with themselves. It was about confronting the unexpected on the screen and in the life. It dramatized interpreted, and enlarged the sense of what was possible in an art form. But with the digital age and ‘Netflixication’ of this audio-visual art form, cinema is slowly losing its meaning. The most worrisome data of concern is the ratio of people aged between 14-24 that are losing their interests in cinemas. People of this age group gave a 23% decline in watching a movie at cinemas in 2019 according to a website named BGR . There is a dire need for making the youth aware of the purpose and significance of ‘true cinema’ and what it promises to offer. True cinema, or what is referred to as ‘art house’ cinema, has a unique impact on people and society. Unlike mainstream commercial films, true cinema is not made for profit or mass appeal but is a form of artistic expression that seeks to challenge, inspire, and provoke its audience. These films often deal with complex issues and themes that require us to engage our minds and think critically. Through films like ‘Bicycle Thieves,’ ‘Breathless,’ ‘Persona,’ ‘Aparajito,’ ‘Stalker,’ and 'The Seventh Seal' we can gain a deeper understanding of the human condition, exploring the depths of our emotions and our existence. Moreover, truecinema has the power to inspire us to be better people. Through films like 'Amélie,' 'The Lives of Others,' and 'The Tree of Life,' we can see the beauty in life, the power of love, and the importance of human connection. These films can inspire us to be more empathetic, compassionate, and understanding, making us better individuals and citizens. Furthermore, true cinema has a significant impact on society, challenging social norms and exposing injustices. Films like 'Do the Right Thing,' 'Moonlight,' and 'Pariah' deal with issues of race, gender, and sexuality, forcing us to confront our prejudices and biases. These films can serve as a powerful catalyst for change, inspiring us to fight for justice and equality. Now, if cinema is such an important medium, then it is important for us to understand and watch movies more critically and be an active recipient of it so that we get the most out of it. Because when we understand the nuances of a medium, we can enjoy the most subtle moments within that medium. Watching movies critically and thoughtfully, gives us better insight to deal with our social anxieties, broken hearts, loneliness, conformism and the absurd. It helps us connect with one another as better beings. Movies may not be able to cure disease or save millions of lives, but they can certainly transform them, one frame at a time. negatives and prints of many films are deteriorating, and unless they are properly preserved, generations. With the advent of digital technology, films can now be easily reproduced and distributed, but this does not mean that they are immune to the ravages of time. The original negatives and prints of many films are deteriorating, and unless they are properly preserved, they may be lost forever. Film restoration may not be the coolest topic when it comes to cinema, but it is an important one. The importance of cinema preservation extends beyond the films themselves. The preservation of cinema is the preservation of our cultural heritage, our history, and our identity. Could you imagine films like The Godfather, Citizen Kane, Mother India, Citylights, Star Wars, Taxi Driver, Mera Naam Joker, Mughal-e-Azam, Deewar, Lawrence of Arabia or any other film close to your heart being lost to posterity, never to ever be seen in its original quality or, even worse, never to be seen at all because the original copy was improperly stored? It may seem unimaginable, but this has happened countless times before to other films. One recent example being a 100-year-old silent film Behula made in 1921 by Kolkata’s famed Madan Theatre, directed by a French filmmaker Legrand Camille featuring one of India’s first superstar Patience Cooper made in the heyday of the silent film era. This film was considered to be lost forever until five-reel print was found in the vaults of the Paris-based Foundation Jérôme Seydoux-Pathé, where it had been preserved for all these decades and has been recently acquired by National Film Archives of India. It was screened at the 7th Film Preservation & Restoration Workshop India 2022 in Mumbai at Regal Theatre on 5th December, 2022. This was an initiative of Film Heritage Foundation and the International Federation of Film Archives under the direction Shivendra Singh Dungarpur and under the guidance of Shri. Amitabh Bachchan and Mr. Martin Scorsese. The impact of cinema on people and society cannot be overstated. These films have the power to challenge, inspire, and provoke us, broadening our horizons and making us better persons. As it is very correctly, "Art is the closest we can come to understanding how a stranger really feels." Cinema is a form of art that has the power to connect us all, creating a better world for everyone. Submitted by: Shoaib Shaikh B. L. S. LL. B at Government Law College, Mumbai.

The typical winters are shy to show their true nature in tropics, but they are omnipresent. The railway station is not so packed yet the crowd is enjoyable. Carrying a millions of stories and many yet to come the wagons are whining. The luggage was taking rest over the dust, as it knew for long this is to come. The fulcrums are moving leaving behind wide farmlands, waterbodies and tunnels, sleeping over drylands and vast valleys, waking up at the ridge. At times winter showed her true nature. The morning was interesting as had to share the seat with a passenger who loves to smoke local weed every 300th second. As the borders changed, people changed, destinations changed. The smiling food delivery agent was a refreshment himself. Crossing ravines of Chambal, picturesque Gwalior was standing royally greeting his guests. The city of hearts where people are in search of a better life, is waking up to the winters. The white flag hoisted over the land goes beyond the eye sight. The experiences made me more excited to reach my destination which I was longing. While crossing the bridge which spans over the river that borders, saw the boat carrying goods to faraway land, the boatman was standing at the bow as if he is bearing a flag. Heading to the colonial structure which makes you feel England is a stone throw away. I stood at the gate looked at the face and tried to respect, but he is in a slumber but I felt like the forehead telling me “see I am going to be here peacefully, let me go back to my sleep”. The garden and statue adorned in the corner excited me more than the classrooms. Routinely meeting new faces from different parts of the nation was enriching, one realises the diversity this country provides is unparallel. Each person you meet have a different and definite reason to tell and decisions around it and how those decisions influence the socio-political life. You walk around you see people with different ideology, orientation, thought process but all are connected by a common thread. Slowly I started attending classes, on a mundane day I walked into Dr. Mathangi Iyyer’s class. One travels from faraway hinterland to urban crowd, see timescale changing in seconds sitting there. When she swayed her hands I felt as if justice was being served. Like a child I sat at room no. 21, a magic of arguments was unfolding in front of me. Flipping through the cases, understanding the facets of justice being changed in moments, which takes you back to one. Here I met the quintessential poem reciting wannabe flamboyant yet naïve friend, out of somewhere. You just pick him up or he picks you that’s it the code becomes part of your life. The roads and pathways were dressing up to give way for summers by shaking and dusting up, with the nexus of local winds. The birch leaves and young minds both were yearning for moisture. I find the bougainvillea flowers at my balcony are more pink than they usually are, sometimes as a secret mission the newspaper boy throws newspaper into these bushes and I have to find it. While having my black tea at the balcony I didn’t know this is the day I am going to see the girl with most beautiful eyes. Whenever her sight falls on me I was praying let the period of limitation shall not apply this time. Walking with elegance and innocence at same time cladding the white scarf, I understood how it will be raining in desert. The aisles and corridors conspired for our eye locks, the stairs bowed for us, the wind gave notice of her arrival. It seemed like bougainvillea of my balcony took inspiration from her cheeks. In every girl I saw her face, the routine pathway to campus felt new to me. It was like nature saying be loved. Whether you like it or not exams will come to you, call of duty. Forth coming days were becoming attached to library hall which has hanging lights and fans from tall roofs where you smell age old books and find a connection with letters. While walking pass through the portraits of alumni, one feel proud and happiness you see we all sat on this creaky chairs at some point of our life. Confused between whether it is my bed or library give sound sleep, spending sands in front of books you start realising fellow humans need to be appreciated, protected and at times you have to fight for them if there is a reason. When veil of silence is lifted it gives way for a perspective we never found existed, which is what art of conversations gifts you. At times we forget to talk, open up because we are scared we will be judged. Open talks need to be appreciated because after very long time these conversations prevails. Exams gave way to internship days, where you are just a child born again. Internship gives you freedom of donning multiple roles sometimes a student, an advisor, an orderly, a son; an extra ordinary opportunity to explore one’s talents. It’s at the chambers I saw between those big ears, multiple roles are done by my senior shaking off every dust of previous one easily and get into next smoothly. Teaching me the basics of court etiquettes to saving from vultures of higher echelons, a camaraderie with multiple facets was brewing. Dictation to drafting to reading to scolding all were making you a better person than yesterday. Walking past the pillars and busy lanes where you see injustice everywhere and can't pursue the same, one just shrug it off or compromise you start realising this system is not bad its people are not cruel they are looking for hope in every face they meet. With the baggage of old blocks plastered with hopes, I ascended the steps of abode of judiciary where same verdict is justice and injustice. While walking to the sanctum I saw milady of justice camouflaged in bougainvillea with those unflickering eyes; She moved close and whispered in my ears - Welcome to lawyer’s paradise! Submitted by: Mohammed Ilyas Campus Law Centre, Delhi University

In India, cinema is almost revered and is the most popular form of entertainment as it is beautiful and much-loved, and has somehow become intrinsic to everybody’s lives, particularly considering the economic viability of a movie. But in the process of showcasing fictional tales, the stories are still not good enough as far as women are concerned. They still treat as one dimensional and only see women in reference to the male lead. Unless there is a female lead, women are largely ignored in the Indian cinema across all languages in which the movies are made. Sometimes even in a movie with a female lead, women are not portrayed correctly. This is not in reference to women playing flawed characters, but rather just showing women in a completely male perspective. Women playing the lead in films is still rare to the point where if such a movie is made, then that becomes the selling point of the movie. In other movies, where the story is built on the male lead the role of women has largely been one sided. This is particularly true for Rajinikanth movies, the largest name in Tamil cinema. Women are always defined with Rajinikanth’s role in mind (such as mother, sister, love interest, and what not), and little to no characterisation is provided to these roles. But one small hope is that the love interest generally has a slightly better characterisation as compared to that of the other women in the movie. This article seeks to analyse the women in Rajinikanth movies along with that of his character. Rajinikanth debuted in Apoorva Raagangal (1975) with a small role. The movie itself dealt with age gaps in relationships, but Rajinikanth’s role in the movie did not contribute much to the story. His first enormous success was Moondru Mudichu (1976) where he played the role of the hero’s (Balaji) best friend and had fallen in love with the same girl (Selvi) as that of Balaji. His character (Prasad) is questionable for he seduces an innocent girl, all the while creeping Selvi out by leering and stalking her and most importantly letting Balaji die. Due to circumstances, Selvi ends up marrying Prasad’s father, and gives back every bit of torture that she had to endure at his hands. While, the depiction is flawed that Selvi had to marry Prasad’s father in order to extract revenge on Prasad, the fact that she found a way to stand up for herself was something that was beyond the time when the movie released and must be lauded. Rajinikanth as Ramanathan truly portrayed a possessive and downright sadistic husband of Anu in his next famous movie Avargal (1977). When after marriage, Anu realised the characteristic of Ramanathan and divorced him, he ends following her to Madras from Bangalore and shows his repentance. Eventually when Anu decides to marry Ramanathan again, turning down the love of her colleague and ignoring her past lover, she sees Ramanathan’s true colours once again, who states that he had to stop his ex-wife’s happiness, as he could not bear to see it. Wow. How wonderful! In 16 Vayathinile (1977), Rajinikanth’s character takes misogyny up a notch from Avargal and actually attempts to rape the heroine (Mayil), after she insults him by spitting on him. This is all after him stalking and leering after her for almost the entire duration of the movie, because why not? Gayathri (1977) had Rajinikanth play a truly despicable role, for he would record his love life and sell in the black market. Why did Rajinikanth even agree to play such a role? Bairavi (1978) showcased the regressive and absurd mentality that the rapist must marry the victim, which Rajinikanth propagated when his sister gets raped. Rajinikanth went back to essaying the role of a chauvinistic and misogynistic person in Aval Appadithan (1978), where his character (Thyagu) even goes to the extent of taking advantage of the heroine (Manju). She, however, does slap him in retaliation (silver lining). The next decade started off with the roaring success of Billa (1980). While the movie itself was not necessarily sexist, it did show scantily clad women being there for men’s pleasure alone. Until then women had come scantily clad just in songs, but not in the flow of the movie as such. This trend has struck with the audiences even now and there always seems to be at least few scenes of this nature. In Netrikkan (1981), Rajinikanth plays a dual role of father and son, the father (Chakravarthy) being a womanizer and the son (Santosh) seeking to make his father realise the error of his ways. Chakravarthy rapes a woman while on vacation, and when he returns to his company, he witnesses tremendous changes all caused by the victim and Santosh. It is shown, that after the series of events, that Chakravarthy does turn a new leaf in the end, which is better for the society, although he is not punished for his crimes against women. When Rajinikanth is not playing a sexist role, the woman herself succumbs to stereotypes, which is what was depicted in Puthukavithai (1982), where the woman is rich and snobbish and Rajinikanth is poor. In Moondru Mugam (1982), Rajinikanth had three roles, and one such character (Arun) had attained sainthood. His father, unable to accept this concocts a plan with a woman (Rekha) to make him give up sainthood. These elaborate incidents have humiliating and unbearable incidents for Rekha, which she somehow willingly does, which is extremely cringy to witness. In Kai Kodukkum Kai (1994), Rajinikanth’s character “forgives” his wife for being raped. Mannan (1992) is an extremely out of place movie, with Rajinikanth’s character (Krishnan) seemingly going against the main lead Shanthidevi, his boss. Krishnan even slaps Shanthidevi multiple times in one scene and tells her to not reveal it to anyone else, for it would put her reputation at stake. The entire movie is unnecessary, filled with toxic masculinity, and has incorrect messaging all throughout that a woman cannot be a good boss. They make matters even worse by finally making Shantidevi a homemaker, because clearly, that is where a woman ought to be. In Annamalai (1992), although the movie is not sexist, the scenes where Rajinikanth’s role (Annamalai) interacts with Subbulakshmi are extremely problematic. There is a scene where Annamalai sees Subbulakshmi naked, and hence she decides that the two of them ought to get married. The other scenes where these two interact are nothing but a cringe fest throughout. What Veera (1994) ultimately boils down to is that Rajinikanth (Muthuveerapan) is married to a woman but is unwilling to tell his past amnesiac lover (who has gotten her memories back) the same and so marries her too. When the first wife finds out about the marriage, he pretends that there was a look alike of him. Moreover, the elaborate way planned for the ex-lover to fall in love with Muthuveerapan is downright sexist. If there is one movie that has been analysed by many for its anti-feminist ideologies, it is Padayappa (1999). In this movie, there is constant tiff between Rajinikanth’s character (Padayappa) and the villain, Neelambari. The pivotal dialogue of Rajinikanth describing how a woman must be is extremely patriarchal in nature. What makes it worse was the fact that that dialogue received the loudest cheers and claps. The fun fact is that Neelambari is actually a completely unapologetic woman who communicated her intentions directly to Padayappa, but the fact that she had the guts to do that was what made her a perceived villain in the movie. True, she did take her obsession to different lengths in the movie, but the problem is that if it had been a man in her role, then that man would have been the hero and not the villain. He would have also gotten the girl in the movie, unlike Neelambari who dies. This problematic double standards are a great problem which is showcased through this movie. Chandramukhi (2005) is the next movie in the list. When Jyotika’s character explains the story of Chandramukhi to Rajinikanth’s character (Saravanan) and says that she was killed by the king, he replies that no one would have wanted to lose a woman as beautiful as she was to another person, and hence the king was justified in killing her. This just reinforces the idea that women do not have autonomy over themselves and that men have the authority to take decisions about them. Kaala (2018) has its anti-feminist moments, such as the tattoo of the name of Rajinikanth’s ex-lover on his arm, but it is called out in the movie itself by Rajinikanth’s wife, where she asks about what would have happened if she had had such a tattoo, for which he has no answer. There might arise a question as to why Rajinikanth. The answer is because of his extensive filmography and immense popularity, which is almost devotion like in Tamil Nadu. When a star has such a huge reach into the hearts and minds of people, he has the capacity to bring about a social change for the betterment of women. But placing the entire responsibility on Rajinikanth’s shoulders alone is not a solution to the depiction of women in cinema. The problem is that of a mindset in the society that women are different, and that has translated to the depiction of women in Indian cinema as we see now. Moreover, it is also a question of economic viability. The movies with a male lead, particularly the so called “masala movies” make so much more money than the realistic movies where women are depicted the way they are. This is again because of the economic standpoint – there are lesser women who visit theatres than the men. Thus, what is visually appealing to the men gets priority over what should be the correct way to depict women, for that is clearly what makes the money. Why would producers then opt for showing women accurately when there is a possibility of making more money otherwise? Another point to note here is that there are much fewer women who take the reins in Indian cinema. With hardly any female directors, writers, producers, and the rest of the people involved to make a movie, what is ultimately depicted on screen is through the eyes of men and it is almost as if the movies are made only for men. Men have not rid themselves of the patriarchal and sexist views completely as well. This has translated to showing career-oriented women, but the housework is still the responsibility of a woman, for example. The silver-lining now is that things are changing. Women are stepping into directorial roles and are also becoming producers. Sudha Kongura’s debut into filmmaking was with the massive blockbuster of Soorarai Pottru, that had brilliant characterisation for both the mother and love interest of Suriya, the main lead. The audience also do not want to watch unrealistic movies and prefer to watch movies that are backed by “content.” This content that is being demanded is that which reflects equality and proves better for women. What this means is for women to showcase characters that can stand on their own, rather than constantly being in reference to that of the male lead. The success of movies such as Thappad, Pink, Kolamavu Kokila, and others are all a result of the movie makers satisfying this clamour for content. Even if the female characters might not have much screen time, many actresses have made their point clear that they would prefer to play such roles rather than the unidirectional roles. Surekha Sikri in Badhaai Ho, Maya Sarao in Thappad, Farrukh Jaffer in Gulabo Sitabo all play minor roles, but with brilliant characterisation. These roles are indeed a breath of fresh air and are all set to pave the way for the days to come. Submitted by: Aparna Venkataraman

Sex is a fundamental desire that all people possess. The urge is so intense that it is governed by a number of social forces such as law, religion, and morality. But are these forces and laws the same for both sexes - male and female? The law is new, but the concept of adultery is centuries old and thus it important to find out what was the law related to adultery then, finding which we will also prove that the religious perspective and laws on adultery had been evolved centuries ago form a basis for the societal perspective even today, which is also reflected in the current adultery laws. To start with we will take up the oldest religion which is the Hindu religion then Christianity, Islam, and then a brief overview of other religions too. AULTERY AS PER HINDUISM In the Hindu religion a huge emphasis is laid n marriages and its sanctity and to make a marriage pure and give it a legal effect saptpadi is performed around a sacred fire. Adultery is considered a major violation of dharma in Hindu shastras. Marriage is viewed as a holy and strongly sanctified relationship in Hinduism. Marriage, according to Hinduism, is a holy union that lasts for many lives and is not limited to one birth. Maintaining the integrity of marriage and upholding matrimonial vows are important. Breaking the consecrated vow and the recognized union of marriage with deities as witnesses is a profanity and terrible karma. The purity of blood in the Hindu religion is of foremost importance it is for this reason that eve marriages outside the caste were forbidden and when a woman enters an adulterous relation the purity of the blood is sabotaged and a legit title is not given to offspring born out of such relation. For Indians, it has always been Sanatan dharma, an immortal faith for Hinduism. Manu smriti was the ancient Indians' eternal code of ethics, and the general population adhered to it faithfully. According to the Hinduism dictionary, “Adultery is sexual intercourse between a married man and a woman not his wife, or between a married woman and a man, not her husband.” Adultery can cause caste uncertainty, degradation of family values, and social disarray. Bhagwat Gita 1.43 too states that: "The intermixture of castes leads the destroyers of the family and also the family to hell. The ancestors (in heaven) also fall, as they do not receive the ritualistic offerings of food and water due to them.” The Vishnu Purana 3.11 thus states punishment for adultery as- “A man should not think incontinently of another's wife, much less address her to that end; for such a man will be reborn in a future life as a creeping insect. He who commits adultery is punished both here and hereafter; for his days in this world are cut short, and when dead he falls into hell.” Other than Vishnu Puram the Mau smriti was a like a code of conduct for Hindus and for adultery was considered as a sin. It stated that, “Day and night woman must be kept in dependence by the males (of) their (families), and, if they attach themselves to sensual enjoyments, they must be kept under one’s control.” “Her father protects her in childhood, her husband protects her in youth, and her sons protect her in old age; a woman is never fit for independence.” While the Manu smriti objectified the woman as something which is of her parents till marriage, after marriage the chattel is handed over to the husband and then in old age finally handed over to her children for protecting her. This, objectification of women in the Hindu religion is also reflected in the patriarchal structure of Hindu society where she has with the death of her husband, she has to face various widowhood-related rituals and a widower goes free. The same is the case when it comes to adultery. Though the Hindu religion does not support extra marital relationships of any kind by any gender still the punishments and social retribution in the case of a woman are harsher because of the existing lower status of wife than her husband and her inferior value in the family. Adultery was actually a married woman getting involved with a man other than her spouse. Adulterous relations or extramarital affairs involving a married woman attract more severe punishments than ones involving an unmarried woman. Manu was highly critical of women's actions and recommended rigorous codes of conduct for men to follow in order to keep an eye on their women and prevent them from engaging in evil behavior that would bring them and their families into disrepute. In case of women the results of adultery are much worse and such actions not easily forgiven or forgotten. This is evident from, “Day and night woman must be kept in dependence by the males of their families, and, if they attach themselves to sensual enjoyments, they must be kept under one’s control.” From the discussion of Manu smriti it can be understood that there was more of objectification of woman in the man smriti and punishments were even stated for man for adultery in its Chapter 8 based on caste and status of the man and the woman. It stipulated a variety of punishment for adultery, ranging from plain repentance to the horrific act of burning the accused. The aim of making "adultery" a crime and limiting it to "Man" was to prohibit "Man" from exploiting women who are denied of their husband's love and attention, as well as to prevent Man from having sexual intercourse with the wife of another man. But when we look historically, we see adulterous relationships drew more criticism and ostracization towards Hindu women. In their situation, the sentences were also harsh. Patita was the name given to an adulterous woman, which meant a fallen or abandoned woman, an outcast, or a woman who had fallen from her husband's grace (pati), example of which can be the famous incident of Ahalya. Indra deceived her and drew her into an illicit engagement, which she bore the brunt of it. In ancient India, women cheating behind their husbands' backs and husbands having extramarital affairs with other women were not uncommon. Indian folklore includes stories revolving around the topic. To sum it up it can be said that the laws in Hindu religion are same as that stated in section 497 or it can be said that the section 497 is the reflection of the Hindu practices which include the punishments for the 3rd person that is the man and also objectification of woman is same in both the cases. Though the Hindu religion has stated punishments for any man seducing the wife of another man, the punishments for woman are not written but it can be assumed that the punishments for woman are driven more by social forces and customary practices one of which being “Patita was the name given to an adulterous woman, which meant a fallen or unwanted woman, an outcast, or a woman who had fallen from her husband's grace (pati). Another epithet was kulata, which meant unchaste woman or a woman who degraded the family's (kula) and husband's good name.” AULTERY AS PER CHRITIANITY: Like in Hinduism, Christianity too gives a very high position to the marriages and considers it as a sacred bond between two peoples of god and the majority of Christians believe that sexual affairs can only take place in marriage. One of the Ten Commandments in Exodus confirms this: You shall not commit adultery. 20:14 (Exodus). And the definition of adultery as per the Christian law is any sexual relationship outside marriage i.e., having sex with someone who you are not married to, attracts adultery in Christian personal law. But the difference between the Hindu religion and Christian religion is that while the Hindu religion considers harsher punishment for a woman (customary) and man (codified) the Christianity as per Bible only considers the extramarital affair of a married woman as adultery. If a married man sleeps with an unmarried woman, it is not considered a felony according to the Biblical meaning. A married man who engages in extramarital relationships with unmarried women is not an adulterer, and the unmarried women with whom he is engaged are not adulteresses. “Adultery is only practiced when a man sleeps with a married woman, whether he is married or not. And if he is not married, the man is considered an adulterer, and the woman is considered an adulterous in this situation. Adultery is described as any illegal sexual conduct involving a married woman. A married man's extramarital affair is not considered a sin in the Bible.” There are double standards in adultery when it comes to a woman’s sin and a man’s sin is condoned easily. Leviticus 20:10 subsequently prescribes capital punishment for adultery but only in those cases which involve a married woman: "`If a man commits adultery with another man's wife--with the wife of his neighbor--both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.” Thus, double standards of adultery are evident from the literatures of this particular religion as the biblical punishment for sex does not apply if the woman is unmarried; otherwise, it applies regardless of the man's marital status. Within these passages, if the man was married but the woman was not, there would be no death sentence for adultery. These double standards on adultery are even reflected today in Catholic Christian countries and until after decades ago the no. of Christian countries considering it as a criminal offence was even higher. The Gulathin Old Christian Law illustrates Christianity's stance toward adulteresses by a related provision that specifies that "a woman had to pay fines to the king for the first three occasions she had lain with a man." If a woman had more than three affairs, she was not required to pay the king's fine because she was deemed a prostitute, a puta. A woman's legal value was also limited if she was deemed a prostitute. The day a woman was declared a prostitute, she was no longer subject to punishment. Along with adultery being a crime committed only by a married woman and not by a married man, there are evidences which show that in Christian law to the woman was considered as an object or property of her husband evident from the: “We only find proof that one of the parties involved was prosecuted in the vast majority of cases involving adultery from the period 1300–1600. This was normally the male. Adultery is especially important from a gender-differentiating perspective because it stands out so distinctly as a male offence, despite its gender-neutral laws.” As adultery was only a crime committed on married woman and thus the prosecution included less woman as affair with an unmarried woman was not considered as adultery. Riisøy, A. I. (2009) thus stated that: “The farmer or husband was the household's head. It was his duty to provide and defend, as well as to rule over family members and servants, within this patriarchal family system. The husband or farmer had greater control over what he did or did not do, and he was more likely to indulge in whoring. As a result, Telste contends that the numbers represent fact, arguing that married men are more likely than married women to be unfaithful, a viewpoint held by Sogner, Lindstedt Cronberg, and Sandvik.” The above examples show that the religion had a biased approach towards adultery in which only female adultery was a more severe sin as per the bible, due to which the women were as objects by the husbands and society thus reflecting the ideology of patriarchy. Several states practiced Biblical traditions prohibiting adultery, which eventually led to the use of adultery as a divorce ground. The connection was clear in certain ways; since adultery is arguably the least likely marital sin to be forgiven, it is more likely than anything else to end a marriage. Owing to its illegal intent, it necessitates a high standard of evidence in divorce case. The stance in the Christian religion that the adultery is a sin for a married woman has seen a softened approach from Jesus, which is evident from the “Jesus and the woman taken in adultery a passage found in the Gospel of John 7:53–8:11”. This shoes how Jesus saved a woman from the societal retribution and gave the idea that every seen is forgivable to benefit everyone who realizes they’re sick with sin and wants healing. AULTERY AS PER ISLAM: People are forced to follow moral rules because they choose to survive in society for reasons other than ethical or physical coercion. Societal beliefs of culture not only control human behavior, but they also have implications on those who violate them. Thus, Islamic law adopted a normative approach to prevent this deviance through adultery for both man and woman. Adultery, as well as fornication and infidelity, are called unforgivable and reprehensible offences, according to the Prophet , “When adultery and promiscuous behavior becomes rampant in a nation, Allah will expose them to His chastisement and He will send upon them such (strange) diseases that their own ancestors never heard of.” Adultery is one of the most heinous and severe sins in Islam. The heinousness can be gauged by the fact that it has been compared to the most evil of offences in the Quran. That is completely clarified in the above-mentioned statement. Men and women who indulge in the sinful act of zina are sentenced to harsh punishments. According to Islamic law, the punishment for premarital sex is 100 lashes, whereas adultery is punishable by stoning to death, also known as Rajm or extreme flogging. Stoning as a punishment for extramarital sex, on the other hand, is not listed in the Quran but is recommended in Hadith. (Hadith are the verbal mores connecting to the words and conduct of the Islamic prophet Mohammad). While men are exceptions in this situation, and a married man sleeping with an unmarried woman is not considered adultery, it is a crime if the woman is married and engages in extramarital affairs. In this scenario, the sentence imposed on her is no less than execution by stoning. Thus, the contradiction to the affirmations made that Muslim law is gender neutral is seen by the claims made in above stances. But the Qur'an, Sura 24 (An-Nur), Ayat 2 states that: "The woman and the man guilty of zināʾ (for fornication or adultery),- flog each of them with a hundred stripes: Let not compassion move you in their case, in a matter prescribed by Allah, if ye believe in Allah and the Last Day: and let a party of the Believers witness their punishment." Fornication and adultery are both punishable by public lashing and lethal stoning, as recommended in Hadiths, Islam's most trusted books after the Quran, especially in Kitab Al-Hudud. This punishment includes 100 lashes and stoning to death but only if the act of adultery is testified by 4 witnesses of good character, but the irony here is that no man of good character would look at such and act and if he will not see or witness such act that the testimony will be false and thus, he will have to face repercussions of giving false statement. The statement to support our claim that the laws of adultery in Islam are male biased we find that the harshest treatment of adultery, which sometimes allows punishment by stoning, occurs in nations governed by Sharia law, and prosecutions tend to be of women rather than men. For e.g., Adultery is prohibited in Pakistan, according to the Hudood Ordinance, which was enacted in 1979. The ultimate punishment under the Ordinance is death. The Ordinance has ignited controversy because it allows a woman who makes a rape allegation to have exceptionally clear evidence in order to prevent being charged with adultery. A rape conviction can only be obtained with the testimony of at least four witnesses. High-profile rape incidents in Pakistan have earned the Ordinance more attention in recent years than comparable legislation in other countries. Other Muslim countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Brunei, have similar rules. Also the Hadith includes, Abu Hurairah which states that: “the Prophet, in a case of intercourse between a young man and a married woman, sentenced the woman to stoning and the young man to flogging and banishment for a year.” The Hadith also includes that: “Allah has ordained a way for those women. When an unmarried male commits adultery with an unmarried female, they should receive one hundred lashes and banishment for one year. And in case of married male committing adultery with a married female, they shall receive one hundred lashes and be stoned to death.” Thus, the common thing observed is the there is no as such special mention of a married man having sexual intercourse outside marriage except for the case in which the sexual intercourse is with a married man. Rather the biasness towards male in cases of adultery is not much visible when we see the texts related to it but as we know that the Muslim law allows a man to marry four woman i.e.polygamy is permitted in Islam for man but for woman. Amina Wadud, leading feminist Muslim scholar, cites three reasons why polygamy is appropriate in the Quran “if the husband is sexually unhappy, he can take another wife rather than return to prostitutes or an affair; if the first wife is unable to conceive or another woman with a child needs to be cared for; and if the husband is financially secure enough to care for another woman in the Muslim community.” Thus, the actual reason why a married man doesn’t need to turn to adultery is that they are provided with and option of marring three more times if they are not satisfied with their first marriage but the same is not there in the case of a wife and her satisfaction does not matter and thus would lead to a deviance from societal norms. When it comes to adultery, some of the laws are same for both man and woman in Islam , also both the adulterer and the 3rd party are punished in equal proportions but adultery as it has evolved through customary practices and different interpretations is mostly seen as the one which includes a married woman in it and also the exclusive right of four marriages given to a man creates and unequal playing field for females as marrying another woman when the first one is alive is considered as a crime in many religions and even today many states consider it as a criminal offences, thus the approach of Islamic society in relation to rights of woman is different from that of a man. Thus, a biased perspective indirectly is evident. Submitted by: Hardik Gupta NMIMS, NAVI MUMBAI