Bound with the fetters of absurd obstinacy, society shushed the ardent cries of unacceptance and differentiated treatment towards eunuchs and in its mutters ridiculed ‘them’ to shame. Ironically, the shame should rest in the lap of those who inferred it with narrow-minded unacceptance. In this pride month, we proudly suggest you a short film “Pencil Box” that reflects the gut-wrenching reality of a society that sabotages gender equality.
The protagonist of the short film is a small boy innocent, unaware of the of world’s ways and kept away from an untold truth. The joyfulness of the kid bound with restrictions, restraining him from outdoor activities and school trip, can formerly be identified as a general parental concern unless we are introduced to the climax scene where a group of eunuchs arrive to take him to “where he belongs”.
The sad fact to note is that even the kid’s family pays hostage to such rudimentary beliefs and kept the kid in dark, treating the fact of him being a eunuch some sort of secret. Instead of being open regarding the child’s gender identity and fighting against the ill societal norms that look down with shame upon any gender.
The group of eunuchs represent the ancient orthodox of conservative society which treats eunuchs differently while the kid symbolizes the modern-day cry of the society for acceptance of eunuchs as a normal being and a part of the society. While the eunuchs stand to take the child with them because the society wouldn’t accept him staying amidst them, there can be seen a personification of the fight between the deep-rooted gender inequality and liberalism.
The battle’s tiring, the result uncertain. Will the rudimentary society victoriously hand the child to the eunuchs or will the retaliation help bring about some change? It’s worth finding out.
