Good Times for Everyone: Sexuality Questions, Feminist Answers

If you are ever bored and in need of a good laugh or just pure entertainment, I recommend this book! I came across Good times, when my friend Priya started reading excerpts from Radhika Chandramani (a clinical psychologist who works on reproductive and sexual rights in Delhi). At point, I actually fell on the floor laughing

“Testicles: I am 19 years old. I don’t know the name of the part of my penis that is troubling me, so I am drawing it in my letter. Is this part, one part is big and the other ball is smaller. What should I do to make them equal? My friends tell me that this is not healthy for my married life and also for my job opportunities”
I was actually quite amused and shocked when I started reading the book on the lack of awareness kids in India have over their own bodies and common misconceptions. Not having access to the right knowledge is one thing but seriously as Radhika points out in her book

“ As for job opportunities, I have yet to hear a job criterion for selection is being testicles equal in size. Fortunately, not too many employers are interested in what your testicles look like”.

All jokes aside(which were many), the book itself addresses common questions that youth in India have concerning their own bodies ranging from a wide topic including menstruation, sex, masturbation to gay and lesbian relationships, HIV and AIDS , STI’s and pregnancies. Radhika aims to demystify sexuality and bring it to the public realm where open discussions can happen in a conservative Indian society. The fact is, sex occurs within every range group and talking about these questions should be done in a common forum where knowledge is available to those who seek it. Questions about sex aren’t just confined to the married life and that realization (no matter how many parents disapprove) is slowly sinking into Indian society and people of all ages from 16-75 and above have a forum to ask questions and share their thoughts. Go Radhika!

One last anecdote from the book:

“I am a 25 year old man, and my wife recently complained she was losing her sexual power. She says that she is not having proper ejaculation....”
Radika’s response: not exactly sure how a woman ejaculates but people don’t have “sexual power” that they lose. It’s not as if there is some defined resvoir of sexuality that people have for a period of time”.

Good, Good times and a complete feminist perspective. Happy Readings.