The panel discussion, which was moderated by Sreyashi Ghosh, an international poet and artist and gender and human rights activist, had Niladri Chatterjee, Dept. of English, University of Kalyani; culinary commentator blogger and LQBTQ++ torchbearer Rukshana Kapadia; and documentary filmmaker Subha Das Mollik as panellists.
Talking about women's voices in society, Rukshana Kapadia said, "I think voices change over time and influences. The voices spoken and projected at 15 are very different from mine at 50."
"And I think you evolve, as does your voice, based on your journey and the people who come into your life for better or for worse and define who you end up wanting to be and choosing to be," she said.
"So voices are important for people like us as they encourage people and give them strength," Rukshana added.
Chatterjee, approaching it from a different angle, said, "Instead of talking about the voice if I talk about the listener? So when I'm speaking, I can very well say that I'm trying to be very clear about what I'm trying to say."
"But what are you hearing? And I think that is rather interesting because what you hear can become very selective, no matter how clear I am with my message. There are certain messages that you will deliberately hear and not hear," the professor said.
"So therefore, I think a voice is only a voice as long as it is hard, because if you don't hear anything, it isn't a voice," Chatterjee said.
"Then again, what are the terms and conditions that one has to satisfy for that voice to be heard? So, therefore, at what cost is their voice being heard in the public sphere? I think that would be my primary concern," he added.
In terms of defining a woman, he said, "A woman is somebody who says she is. My definition is done. So therefore, I am not going to assume that in order to be a woman, you have to, you know, check my list of 10 boxes."
"You know, if you say you're a woman, you jolly well are and I don't think that that is something that is out for discussion anymore," he said.
On same-sex marriage in Indian context, Rukshana said, "I don't think I'll ever need a piece of paper or a ceremony to make me think of my partner as the very best part of my soul."
"But tomorrow, if it gets legal, I will definitely walk into a courthouse, holding her hand, and sign up on that paper. Just so that I know if I need to take care of her or if she needs to take care of me and I will be able to give her the dignity and respect that she's earned and deserves as my partner," she said.
(Reporting by Ayush Gupta)