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Episode 3 & 4 resources

Special Guests




Michiel Baas:


Michiel Baas is a Research Fellow with the Asia Research Institute of the National University of Singapore, Singapore. He holds a PhD in anthropology from the University of Amsterdam. Most of his work centers on questions related to India, in particular with reference to the topics of migration, mobility and transnationalism. Michiel Baas has spent a decade studying gyms, trainers and bodybuilders, and finds in them a new way to investigate India. He walks us through the homes and workspaces of these men—yes, they are almost all men—to bodybuilding competitions and also into their most intimate worlds of ambitions, desires and struggles. An unusual study of an unusual subject, Baas unveils a fascinating world, hidden in plain sight.


Pradeep Bhatia


Pradeep Bhatia is the dynamic driving force behind the vision called ELIXIR FITNESS. In 2007, Pradeep won the coveted “Mr. Delhi” title in the Bodybuilding Championship and created a sensation. After completing a rigorous training schedule from Watson Fitness, Mumbai, Pradeep took on the challenge of heading Barbarian Power Gym. Within a span of 2 years, with clients like-Katrina Kaif, Sunita Kapoor, Amrita Arora, Ritesh Deshmukh, Singer Badshar, Ranbir Kapoor, Lara Dutta, Diljit Dosanjh, Siddharth Malhotra, Chitrangada, and Priyanka Chopra.



Sahuba Dhupar:


Sahuba Dhupar empowers people and enriches their skill set. She is an internationally Certified Communication skills trainer and a language expert by Cambridge & British Council, foft skills trainer by Scotland Qualifications Assurance, trainer accredited by NABET (National accredition board of education and training), an Image consultant and grooming etiquette coach and a member of IMPA (Image management professionals association), an etiquette Educator from British School of Etiquette and a transformation Coach from Transformation Academy, Florida. She strives to strengthen people’s motivation and guide them towards the establishment of their credibility, realize and build their potential whilst getting rid of their inhibitions in the process.





Sex stats



Agents of Ishq: link

  • Agents of Ishq is a multi-media project about sex, love and desire. Or, to put it another way, we make cool videos, beautiful images and great audio about sex, love and desire in India. Agents of Ishq is brought to you by Parodevi Pictures, an independent media and art company based in Mumbai.

  • Agents of Ishq sex survey: Link

Penis size/ relationship with the penis

  • Comfortable 65%

  • Proud 16%

  • Anxious 15%

  • Tender 12%

  • awkward 6.5%

  • Other 2%

Influences their attitudes

  • Porn 57%

  • Cultural attitudes 25%

  • Traditional attitudes 18%

  • Art 18%

  • Lifestyle magazines `10%

  • Have you ever been shamed for your penis

  • 88% no

  • 12% yes

  • What would you like to change about your penis?

  • 36.5% length

  • 22% girth

  • 12.5% - change that it is bent

  • 5% other

  • 46% it’s fine - wouldn't change

  • Do you compare your penis to others

  • Yes 53% - of that 21% worse, 15% better, 55% just different, 8% other


The body is not an apology - link

Muscular India: Michiel Baas link


Dr. Mahinder Watsa - sexpert link

  • For 15 years, Mahinder Watsa, 96, had been shocking Indian sensibilities with his Ask the Sexpert column for The Mumbai Mirror. Tens of thousands of people have sought advice on a variety of issues, including the size and shape of penises, fears of masturbation and hymen reconstruction. Following are selections from his correspondence published in The Mumbai Mirror and a site created by his fans.


The body keeps score - link


#BoysLockerRoom: Why We Need Sex Education Now More Than Ever link


Porn

  • “A recent sex survey by video content platform, Vitamin Stree, has revealed that though 46 percent of urban millennials in India learn about sex at the age of 13, a majority admitted to having had unprotected sex.” link

  • “Majority of our respondents said they learn about sex from their friends, since sex education is more or less absent in the Indian Education system. Porn and the internet come a close second when it comes to teaching young people about sex, with 30 percent men learning about sex via the two. Considering 99 percent of porn is a gross misrepresentation of sex, made only from and for the male gaze, it does not make for a great starting point” link

  • With the survey revealing that almost 50 percent of urban millennials lose their virginity between the age of 14 and 18 years, the study highlights the need to educate youngsters about sex. link

  • After the US and UK, India is the third biggest porn-watching nation and despite the ban on 857 porn sites by the government in 2015, 91 percent of urban millennials accepted that they watch porn.