Got no time for hide and seek

Recently AIB released an animated video on sex education that breaks barriers using comedy as an approach to talk about sex and other things that comes with it. The video shows a man who knows nothing about sexually transmitted infection’s (STI) and lives in a stigma of not getting tested for it because he comes from a “good family”.

Is that stigma carried on to the rest of our society? Are we so unaware about sex and STI’s? We speak to a few college students and experts about whether sex education is important and how not getting it, affects each one of us.

Nitin Mishra who is a B. Tech student says that, “In school, we did get sex education, but that was only during when the reproductive system chapter came in during science class. But, what they taught us was so basic, like I had no clarity on that subject with that class.”

“Most of my sex education came from my friends and the Internet. And the fact that you might catch an STI after an unprotected intercourse only came to me through entertainment or movies to be precise,” he adds.

Adding onto that, Ashley Tellis, an LGBT rights activist, an academic who has over 20 years of experience with sex and sexuality education says, “Most young people have no idea about sex or sexuality and their own bodies. I have worked with North Indian young men for over 20 years now and they know nothing about women’s bodies, nothing about sex and sexuality, and nothing about their own bodies.”

“It is not that they are not hesitant to talk about it but there are no healthy spaces to talk about it. The sources they go to are either quack hakims and vaids on the roads with their quack remedies to sexual problems, pornography of different kinds or popular cinema, all of which are ignorant, damaging and counterproductive,” he adds.

So, is it still a taboo to speak about sex in the schools and colleges in India? ‘Sex Education’ is never taught in schools or for that matter, even in colleges.

Preethi Manjunath, a law student who studied in an all-girls school tells us that, “The only discussion we had about human reproductive system or body parts was during 8th standard where they told us about periods, which in itself was very awkward for us because the teachers made us feel that way. But, apart from that there were no other classes where they taught us about Sex or STIs.”

What do doctors have to say about it? We speak to Dr Sreoshi Priscilla, a physician who tells us that, “In my opinion, sex education is important. As the youngsters grow, they have issues fitting into society and trying to figure out who they are. Sex education does clear a lot of confusion that they maybe in doubt of.”

She further adds, “A few of them might get some information about it, others maybe clueless. Education in this department does prevent unwanted pregnancies, spread of infections i.e, STIs or even abuse and rape. It is not only for the well being of the individuals but also respect towards the other gender.”