The underbelly of prostitution

There is a whole lot of disgrace attached to the business of prostitution and stigma to the prostitutes that constitute this dark world. Prostitutes are considered as mere commodities by the society, by denying them self-respect, justice, acknowledgement and the dignity of labor. Has anyone ever spared a thought about the pull factors of prostitution? Going by the number of sex workers renting their flesh to earn a living, doesn't the demand for their services contribute equally to the thriving of the sex trade? Shouldn't they be acknowledged for the plain reason that it is because of them that the women of our land are safe and can live without any fear of being raped and sexually assaulted?

I'm totally convinced that sex trade is not something one would even remotely fantasize about and happily be part of. Most of the prostitutes in India have either been sold to brothels or introduced to the profession owing to knowing someone from within the business. Girls under the age of 14 who are forced into sex slavery are prevented from gaining access to education and proper healthcare. These minors grow up to be adults who barely have any exposure and idea about the life that exists outside of what they do. All their lives, the only question they dodge revolves around what made them choose wooing men, almost bare-bodied, and redeeming their character in exchange for money. And then, some hold them responsible for provoking men and exploiting the society by thinking that they just want to have fun. Does the fun factor play any part when most of these women have been disowned by their families for doing what feeds their stomach? Can the fun last when the only reason they indulge in the act of providing bodily pleasures is to fund their children's education who will ultimately come to terms with the helplessness that a sex worker's child is meant to live with? Can the bodily pleasures go beyond the lack of access to protection which puts them at a serious risk of contracting HIV/AIDS? Can the fun survive the fear of having to face severe consequences in the form of police investigation and raids for indulging in a trade which is largely illegal? Nothing in this world but helplessness can force someone to put their moral character at risk and prepare them to accept the eventualities of life.

A lot of movies and documentaries have highlighted the lives of sex workers and the ordeal they go through in their day-to-day lives because of the nature of their work. These movies have gained a vote of support from the masses as a whole and, efforts have been made to provide help to sex workers by making them aware about the importance of protection and trying to legalize their profession. But, what still remains is the mentality and perception of a majority of the population which relegates them to a place in the trash can, where all they are surrounded with is waste. Even today, every time someone passes a red light area by, snide remarks are always made about how intoxicating and cheap this business and the people in it are. This clearly highlights the hypocrisy that exists in our society, wherein, as much as we are thankful for the existence of prostitution and willing to legalize the profession, trying to look at them without judging them is something that seems beyond us. The recent example of actress Shweta Basu Prasad, who was exposed for being part of a sex racket just further validates the point that, the victim blaming culture is something that we refuse to move beyond. While the ones who get indulged get off scot-free, the females have are left with added struggles to survive all the bashing, injustice and trauma that follow.

We easily entertain the beggars and urchins with sympathy. There is quite a difference between those that stay helpless and those that battle helplessness. And those who battle helplessness to fend for themselves, despite being labelled 'whores' and 'sluts', should be more deserving of our thoughts and sympathies. It takes guts and strength of mind to not fall prey to the prying eyes of the people by trying to find your voice to face the society, when all the people around you want to do is judge you and get the better of you.

In the end, mortality is all that remains!

Once, there existed a king known to be very shrewd and evil. The thought of entering his territory was dreaded by many. The people of his kingdom never dared to interact with him for the plain reason that if they said anything wrong, they would be subjected to harsh punishments. The king's ability to successfully battle threats and obstacles form external sources was the primary reason why he was accepted by the people of his kingdom. Through his reigning years, the king was contained by his pride and ego. After the years of glory faded away into oblivion, all that the king was left with was his own sense of being, which was life in its real form. However, till his death, the king could never really grasp the reality of life after all the power he considered to be permanent was gone.

In our heydays, we often tend to lose touch with the real world. Certainly. Some of us, a little earlier than the others. Because we all have wings that are fully developed in our prime, falling down is almost impossible. When we take off, the thought about touching down upon a destination is certain. But sometimes, we start flying so high that we lose sight of the ground we took off from. In our lives, that ground can mean anything from culture, values, roots among others. It is good to fly high so long as practicality exists in the form of knowing that the flight cannot go on forever. And one fine day we shall have to come down to where we belong. The only difference we find is that, some people choose to fly, keeping their reality intact, while some people refuse to look down. Some of us reach tremendous heights in our lives, sometimes being alone in the firmament. The time when we look to come down is when we realize that we have left our destination far behind. At times, we get so involved in achieving materialistic goals that we overlook the fact that it was happiness and contentment that we had set out to attain in the context of what we did. Joy and satisfaction are not destinations. We all live thinking that after a certain age, when we will have enough money, happiness will follow us eventually.

I'm often told that I'm at an age when all that should matter is meeting new people, working hard enough towards achieving my goals and achieving financial success. But my focus inevitably keeps coming back to the core elements of life that will determine the outcome of my future courses of action. As important as it is to gain social and financial relevance, I'm well aware of the fact that these successes are not permanent. If I'm in a career which gives me umpteen rewards if I succeed, then I should also know that I'm only as good as my last success. I will not be in the reckoning as soon as I quit. So when I clearly know that my successes and failures won't last forever, then it is only beneficial for me to know that I should live a life that allows me to look beyond the periphery of what I do. As I grow older, I increasingly get protective of my real self. Every moment becomes a battle between learning something new and retaining the sensibilities and ideologies I have lived by. As the options of newer ideas float around for my approval, I keep becoming more and more mindful about which ones to buy into. The world keeps giving me different tags depending on the various roles they have seen me embodying. It is only I who will ever know the truth of my life. That my time here is limited is well known and I must juggle various labels with the ultimate one being that of a mortal. My core identity of being a puppet in this universe can never change because of any any self-proclaimed puppeteer.

Abraham Lincoln made a very powerful statement when he said that, ''Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.'' Many greats have successfully passed the test of character only after adversity introduced them to their limitations. Being aware about our limitations makes power seem transient. The only and only way one can ever become powerful is by breathing life into his/her true character. And anything that takes you away from your mortality, is only stealing from you the very purpose of your existence. And that is why the people who are the happiest are the ones who have never owned fame, money and success. They just co-exist with the riches of the mind. Talk about the enlightened souls!