Myths about gender

Mythology and folklore certainly examined the issues around gender with a boldness that seems way ahead of its times

Last week, the five-judge Supreme Court bench unanimously overturned Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code to decriminalise sexual relations between consenting adults of the same sex. The spectacular 495-page verdict drew from a wide range of philosophical and literary texts to explain its decision and to interpret the issue of gender beyond the male-female binary. 

Identity and sexual preference are a function of dignity and liberty, the judgement implied. One has the right to choose and it is only when the individual’s choice is respected that we can emerge as a truly equal nation. This may seem like a