Growing up, I believed that femininity was the art of being unimposing. It was to be soft-spoken and slim, gentle in the face of any extremity thrown your way. This message seemed to bombard me from every direction, from well-meaning relatives’ constant comments to the male-written women gracing my TV screen.  I, being tall, large, and loud, submitted early on to the belief that I may never achieve the feminine ideal.

Keethana Kunnath’s latest project, 'Not What You Saw', dismantles this patriarchal ideology by showcasing a group of South India’s female bodybuilders. The homegrown photographer captures athletes looking ethereal as they flex their muscles, their skin glowing with soft droplets of sweat. The portraits are composed to display the women’s bodies, however, unlike what we see all too often in the media, this is not done to cater to the male gaze. Rather, it is a celebration of their strength. These photos capture women unafraid to take up space, despite the constant societal insistence that they make themselves smaller. And they look absolutely stunning. 

Femininity is, by definition, the qualities characteristic of women. And yet, the use of the term in our current social landscape is confined to a subjugated form of womanhood. In the eyes of the patriarchy, a woman should be docile and small because she is to be dominated. The implications of this are particularly troubling considering the prevalence of rape culture in India. As protests seeking justice for victims of sexual violence, instigated by the tragic rape and death of a doctor in Kolkata, occur nationwide, we must consider how patriarchal views of womanhood contribute to our rape culture. Women are not submissive objects but exist in many forms, each as valid as those that conform to social expectations. 

'Not What You Saw' is a prime example of the beauty that exists outside of society’s narrow expectations of femininity. And more than just beauty, these pictures show the power women’s bodies hold. Our bodies do not exist for sexual appeal or male validation; they are ours to strengthen and use as we please. Femininity, in its truest sense, is then not the constricting standard I believed it to be as a child. Instead, it can be found in these pictures: in strength, truth, and embracing ourselves as we are.

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