The FIR against actor Ranveer Singh for Instagramming his nude pictures for Paper has come close on the heels of the internet going agog over what some have called “attention-deficit behaviour”. In addition to ensuring he continues to be the most-discussed and shared entity in both mainstream and social media, this has also sparked a torrent of discussions on the binaries of porn or art, stunning or offensive, sensual or sexual, and objectifying or empowering.
Though nudity has historically been off-kilter, clad in societal taboos and beliefs, being perceived as ‘sinful’ because it is seen as sexual, why have we always been intrigued by nudes? Social restrictions make nudity all the more appealing, according to Baroda-based sociocultural historian Prajakta Doshi. “It also satisfies our primal urge to be naked. History demonstrates how this often takes the form of a plan to weaken and oppress people. Contrary to societies that some people like to refer to as ‘backward,’ where being naked is common, it is the ‘developed’ world that frequently provides this exposure and unclothes the predatory edge.”
Psychiatrist Rajendra Barve concurs that the prohibited is what draws people to nudity. “Children are reprimanded for becoming ‘nanga-poonga’ starting in early childhood, at a vulnerable age, before they even become sexualised. When the first stirrings of sexual attraction begin in youth, this clashes with raging hormones. While we all struggle with it by varying degrees, exhibitionists and nudity addicts frequently have a lot of unresolved baggage.” He claims that porn, risqué movies and even some advertisements just fuel this hunger.
Is this why the glamour industry’s revenue is directly proportional to skin-show? Well-known photographer Andrea Fernandes, who has produced a large body of work, including nude female subjects, dismisses it as insulting. As opposed to that, she asserts, “I feel it is necessary to provide images of women that defy prejudices in their visual depiction.”
She cites the instance of how Kim Kardashian exposing her already “exoticised behind” added to the millions of photos of women’s bodies which treat them as passive objects to see and judge, juxtaposing it with the stand taken by Natalie Portman, who “recovered control of her image by agreeing to go topless for a shoot on condition her breasts wouldn’t be photo-shopped to appear larger (as is generally done)”.
Dylan Rosser, who has been solely photographing male nudes across the world for more than a decade, has a distinct perspective. This former Londoner, who now calls Ibiza home, believes that nudity itself is irrelevant. “The subject is only challenging because it is more challenging to locate subjects and places for nude photography.”
He acknowledges various moral standards and guidelines for the ‘acceptable’ and ‘wrong’ depending on one’s environment, upbringing, and religion, but rejects the idea his art is in any way pornographic. “Even photos of the erect penis don’t, in my opinion, qualify as porn. There is nothing provocative or shocking in the male body by itself unless you show an explicit sexual act. I’m trying to just make/capture a nice image that is well-lit, with good composition, to make the model look his best.”
Do men and women respond to being clicked nude differently? Model Milind Soman should know. In June 1995, he and Madhu Sapre made an appearance in the buff for a shoe advertisement, with only a python covering them, netting a 14-year obscenity prosecution. “Women always take a lot more heat than men for nudity. Although I know several Mumbai-based photographers who frequently use male nudes in their artistic work, I was never approached. Though widely known and available online, you rarely (like my case or Ranveer’s) see any uproar over that.”
Pronouncing his judgment on the Soman-Sapre case, the then additional chief metropolitan magistrate, M J Mirza had said, “What may be obscene for one group of society may not be obscene for another.”
Contextualisation of nudity and its ecosystem, according to Dr Barve, can alter perception. “Few find the sight of naked ascetics sexual unless specifically looking for that kind of kink. In fact, it might terrify, disgust, or even repel. The mounting of the shot, lighting, camera angles, and the way the body frames the genitalia contributes to the allure,” he explains and swiftly adds, “Ultimately, that too is objectification with a cause.”
Is that what Ranveer achieved?
