In picture: (Top left) Anush Ghosh, (Top right) Sayan Sanyal , (Bottom left) Aneesh Ayyappan, (Bottom right) Nimisha Sachdeva.
Voicing out
In picture: (Top left) Anush Ghosh, (Top right) Sayan Sanyal , (Bottom left) Aneesh Ayyappan, (Bottom right) Nimisha Sachdeva.
Earlier this year, she shot to fame when she was trolled online for speaking up against alleged violence by members of a student political outfit. Daughter of Kargil war martyr Captain Mandeep Singh, Gurmehar Kaur also courted controversy by appearing in a placard video that said it was war, not Pakistan, that killed her father. She has now been included in the list of ‘Next Generation Leaders for 2017’ of Time Magazine, with a title of ‘free speech warrior’.
Metrolife went around asking people what they feel about this development.
Sayan Sanyal, marketing consultant
“It is an example of the empowerment of women. A 20-something woman, studying in a college in Delhi, is speaking about the general consensus of the nation and voices her opinion against propaganda; it has to be noticed. But at the end of the day, I don’t know if she is able to influence the generation she belongs to. It is a big step for her to come out and talk about such things but the furore around it is temporary, as is the recognition. I don’t think it will be as impactful a few months down the line.”
Anush Ghosh, student
“I think that including her in the list is a very good thing; we need more people like her who are not afraid to speak their minds. But what hurts me is when people mock her. When people like Gurmehar bring up something important and relevant to our society, I wonder why others make an issue or a joke out of it. I think our idea of nationalism hinges on the hatred towards Pakistan and when she said it was war, and not Pakistan, that killed her father, our egos were hurt.”
Nimisha Sachdeva, entrepreneur
“Colleges should be institutions where our ‘freedom of speech’ is protected. Gurmehar Kaur, or any other student, should not feel afraid to exercise their ‘right to freedom of speech’. Usually people are afraid to voice their views as we don’t know whose sentiments we might hurt. Gurmehar has stood against this fear and completely deserves the ‘free speech warrior’ title. Being recognized as a ‘next generation leader’ not only affirms her beliefs, but gives all of us the confidence to stand up against what we feel is wrong.”
Aneesh Ayyappan, banker
“I commend her courage to speak out against a political outfit that has a strong presence in her university. But I can’t help wonder if there are any vested interests in including her in that list - maybe to send out a message that the youth in general are against the government or to subvert the discourse because I don’t see what she’s done to deserve this. Anybody can react, she just chose a different way to do so.”