Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind

23 February 2013 8 Comments

A number of Facebook pages parading under the title ‘IIT Confessions’ have sprung up overnight, and have resonated widely with IITians across the country. They are an outlet for the bored student, the sort that Facebook seems to be such a fertile breeding ground for during Quiz Week, and though these pages started small, they quickly gained so much popularity that it is almost impossible to be ignorant of their existence.

These pages (there are individual ones for different IITs) allow students to make confessions online anonymously, which are then posted on the page. But while the word ‘confession’ is usually associated with an admission of guilt and a sense of closure and relief for the person making the confession, authors of these confessions have taken the act of confession and turned it into something very different. The confessions here seek to shock, to titillate, to entertain, and never to be (that dreaded word) boring. They also reveal startling insights into the mindset of the student body, or at least a section of it.

When the IIT Madras Confessions page started, what drew many of us to it were harmless pranks played on classmates. Such posts were usually by impersonators pretending to have feelings for some or the other student- they were the earliest posts that I saw on the page, and were amusing for the brief period they lasted.

T5E_confess

But very quickly other kinds of posts began trending on the page- posts about sex and sexuality, posts about people’s fantasies, posts that seek to defame some person or another, posts that were shrill in their condemnation of something or someone. These posts were on the page yesterday morning, and stayed there until the afternoon. Worse, there seemed to be a section of students who were egging on these confessors. It was a situation of free-for-all voyeurism, where everyone was trying to shock everyone else with scandalous entries and potshots at people whose identities were very poorly concealed. Under the easy cover of anonymity, emboldened by the support and encouragement, some authors were striving to outdo one another in being scandalous.

Several students reported abuse on the posts and requested the moderator to take them down. A moderator says that, at first, they published every confession they got, but now they employ a process of scrutinisation. Out of 750 confessions that the page has received thus far, around half have been deemed unfit for publication on the page. Some of the offensive posts were removed after publication. Now, the confessions that are published are much more tame.

Of that slew of confessions, of which some still remain on that page, most were sex-centric (usually tales of masturbation, or abusive and lecherous posts about women), while some others were complaints against institute culture in general. They reveal a deep dissatisfaction in the campus community. I do not know how big a section of the community this is (anecdotal evidence suggests that it is a small fraction of the populace, with some authors admitting that they posted multiple times), and it is quite probable that many of the stories are fake, but they represent a bitterness and frustration that is very real.

Although the worst posts are gone, several pertinent questions remain. Of the most insulting posts, I wonder: what drove people to be so mean, to defame others in that fashion? Why did they enjoy it so much? Perhaps, for a while, they felt like kings on their little Facebook page, where they could judge and condemn as they pleased, answerable to no one and nothing.

There were also lewd comments and abuse aimed at women in the campus (often for the simple crime of not seeming ‘attractive’ to these male confessors, or rejecting their advances). These posts are telling of the startling perceptions of a small section of the campus. They tell of a campus where some of the population lacks the social skills and the maturity to engage in a level-headed dialogue with members of the opposite sex. Is it their limited interaction with girls that is the reason for this malady? Does this speak of a fundamental disrespect for women? Some people expressed a desire to read scandalous stories by girls: there was a confessor who exhorted girls to ‘open up’ on the page, citing the ‘bold’ (read: sexually explicit) comments of girls from other IITs as an example.

And then there were the posts that spoke of acts of depravity, drunkenness, and experiments with drugs. In different ways, the confessors in each of these posts seemed to be gleefully crowing the same thing: “We’re all so terribly bad, aren’t we?”

Also notable were confessors voicing their opinions against institute festivals, Lit-Soc, Institute Secretaries, etc. A confessor posts: “I wanted to be a part of lit-soc as a freshie, but I soon felt the elitist attitude prevalent in the lit circles.” Another confessor, in an irate diatribe about everything he hates, posted, “Institute secretaries can’t even convincingly speak English”, highlighting the student’s perception that to be in a position of responsibility, one needs to be fluent in English. Coordinators, secretaries, and whole departments of Shaastra and Saarang were the targets of criticism. There were posts about dirty politics in IITM too: “Indian Politics look much better when compared to insti ones [sic]”, among others. This speaks of a simmering resentment among a section of people in the institute against student representatives and activities. But what is striking is that all of these confessors seem to have done nothing more about it than post anonymously about them, indicating that it might have been a very petty sentiment which drove such posts.

All along, there seemed to be an unbridled, childlike glee in breaking all social norms and conventions. People felt a juvenile satisfaction in airing their dirty laundry and festering grudges. There are, however, a few genuinely humorous posts, some actual confessions, and posts that speak of an overriding disillusionment with the system. How many of these are genuine is unknown, but the number of such posts has significantly increased since the moderator started screening the posts that went up. There are also some posts that speak of sadness (“I’m damn sad in life. There, I said it”), boredom and low confidence, and it is good to see that some of them have supportive comments beneath them.

‘IIT Madras Confessions’ was inspired by the more generic ‘IIT Confessions’, which in turn seems to be modelled on similar sites by US universities. Right now, ‘IIT Madras Confessions’ has an ardent following. When I posted a comment about some of the offensive content on the page, I was informed by a ‘sincere fan of the page’ (as he called himself) that I might have killed what had been a fun activity for many. Encouraged by the success of anonymous confessions, it seems, another page has sprung up- ‘IIT Madras Proposals’.

But in a week, perhaps, this page will be forgotten. Maybe all the posts will become harmless, genuine confessions, and then people will lose interest in them. We will then wait for the next sensation, the next viral video, the next ‘entertaining’ page on which we can fritter away hours of our life. But I cannot help thinking that as our institute bounds from achievement to achievement and crosses new milestones, pages like ‘IIT Madras Confessions’ reveal a parallel, darker narrative.

Rating: 4.1/5 (68 votes cast)

8 Comments »

Mathematician said:

I think the problem is not just with the IIT system, but a India-wide cultural problem. Male-Female interactions are not encouraged, the sole fact that there are different hostels for boys and girls, and they are segregated like some sort of army concentration camp is proof of this. There is deep rooted sexism in the minds of the common man. Other egs are organizing names of boys and girls in separate ordered lists for attendance in school, reservation for women, reserved seats in buses for women, waiving income tax for women, separate Qs for men and women (eg a temple). I am not saying women are not oppressed, I am sayin we simply can’t accept our physical differences and be open towards each other. We don’t perceive men and women as the same human beings, but there is a very clear distinction in our minds. Also, women don’t take responsibility and think they are equal to men. They still think they are psychologically and physically weaker to men. This is one of the few horrible flaws of the Indian culture, the other being the insistence that unconditional and unreasonable amount of respect should be given to elders and authorities. It supresses the spirit of independant thinking and free thought.

Rating: 4.8/5 (9 votes cast)

# 24 February 2013 at 7:00 am

Captain Obvious said:

Dear Tyler,

By using such a long and elaborate name, Anon was employing a form of humour which uses absurdity to make a point. This form of humour is commonly called ’sarcasm’. While many people have heard of the word itself, it is an unfortunate fact that few are able to identify its meaning when it is embedded within a larger context.

Sincerely,
Captain Obvious

P.S.: There were real and very damaging references to people and events. Perhaps you failed to recognize them, just as you fail to recognize certain other things that tend to stare you in the face. However, I shall be kind to you. Maybe they were taken down before you saw them.

Rating: 1.0/5 (4 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 11:41 pm

Common_IITian said:

@ Disappointing Student :

I won’t say Lit-Soc is elitist but definitely elections are biased and are are centered around regional politics than on real merit or talent (the other part of The Cribbing Guy’s post).

Elections usually go like this.. dude, he is gult ra – vote for him.
or bei, he is from the North dude – vote for him!

Half the people holding elected positions are there because of large contis, influences and false promises. Yes I would go on to say Insti politics is as bad as Indian politics.

Classic example is a popular internet meme : ” Played Guitar for 10 hours.. stands for Culsec” – talent and commitment comes secondary, regional identity is pre-requisite criteria.

@ Author : On why people don’t take this issue further.

Same reason why, even though the dirty politics of INC is well known, we haven’t passed a no confidence motion and dissolved the system.

Its easy to spot the problem, difficult to fight it out. Frankly, no one here has the time for that. As it was confessed by someone else – Cordship is overrated, meant for those who have average CG and would want to make sure they get placed. People with good CG would be busy preparing for higher education and apping or job interviews. People with below average CG would be busy trying to increase it. Since half the insti population doesn’t care, and the rest half is somewhat indifferent, the system prevails.

Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 11:23 pm

Tyler Durden said:

@Anon: Don’t you think that’s too long a name for a like page?
On a serious note, the page might’ve been started for whatever purposes that only the admin might know. What I’m talking about is people submitting the “confessions”. For them, it is just another idea of having fun.
What do you mean real reference to the people or instances? Most of the “sex, weed etc” stories have no real references to people or places.

Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 9:58 pm

Anon said:

@Tyler Durden: If that is the case, why do they reference real people, events and things? If people wanted a page for fantasies, I’d advise them to start one called ‘IITM fantasies featuring purely fictional characters, made-up events and plenty of sex’.

Rating: 3.0/5 (4 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 9:13 pm

Tyler Durden said:

Oh! For chirssakes! I don’t understand why people are reading too much into this. All of it is JUST FOR FUN! Not even 10% of those confessions are true. None of the confessions are anybody’s fantasies. They’re there just for fun. They’re work of fiction. Would you call everything an author writes about in a fictional book his fantasies? Would you evaluate his “state of mind, the pressures, the sexuality, the frustrations”?

Don’t jump to conclusions. Don’t read too much into the lines. Don’t judge us. Don’t scrutinize everything that IITians do. Please.

Rating: 4.6/5 (10 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 8:59 pm

WP said:

I agree with you on most counts in that many confessions posted onto the page reveal a deviant thought process and shocking mentality prevalent in a section of the institute populace. But there is another angle to the whole affair. What is it in the system that encourages this kind of behavior? Of course, the skewed sex ratio is partly to blame but surely, that cannot be all. Is it the load of acads(or rather the relentless competition) that leaves little time (if at all) for healthy social interaction with the world outside our 4 gates? Is it our selection procedure that has more than its share of flaws? Is it the general way of functioning of our student body that seeds resentment by precluding a certain section of people from doing certain things (as some ‘confessions’ themselves proclaim, not speaking certain languages disqualifies someone from elections, not being from certain hostels/ not being proficient in English disallows junta from being part of litsec inner circles etc.) ? Or it could be a wide array of other factors, all of which we have to consider if we are truly be an inclusive society that benefits all its members and not only a select few. What we can learn from the page, with absolute certainty, is that we, as an institute, have a lot of introspection to do.
On a different note, despite all the negative publicity (or not?!) generated by the page (especially among frantic students preparing for JEE, who, I’m quite sure are having nightmares about what is going to happen if and when they crack the exam and join our ranks), one good thing that has come out is that there have been a few confessions that really threw light about personal fears, insecurities and misgivings. Perhaps Mitr/ Medall should take note and open up a similar forum, albeit with professional guidance? (I’m sure that initiative, if ever it comes in won’t be as effective with all the glamour gone. But it is sure to benefit from the momentum generated by the FB pages).

Rating: 4.5/5 (8 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 8:18 pm

The cribbing Guy said:

^Above, with all due respect, who says I haven’t improved my skills and didn’t participate? I did not like the attitude but I still did participate and the skills that I gained from the participation helped me a lot in many situations. I just didn’t like the attitude. In other words, I participated because I was already good at some of the Lit-based activities, thanks to my schooling. The end of the post says that I hope it is taken positively. I am pained that other people who aren’t fortunate enough weren’t given much thought. Also, I disagree with the fact that IITans wasted taxpayer’s money. At the end of the day, every human being needs to relax. This page just acted like a stress-buster for a few days. If people bunked their classes and research just to focus on the page, then it is a wastage that should be condemned. People just had fun and trolled for two days.
Don’t be offended by this and please take this with my good intent.

Rating: 4.5/5 (11 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 7:59 pm

Disappointed Student said:

Very well written, I was just waiting for a T5E article on this issue, it’s sad to see IITians waste their time reading and writings their fantasies while a huge amount of tax payers money is being spent to educate them and provide them the best facilities. To the guy who was cribbing about Lit-Soc being elitist, if you hadn’t wasted your time just like you are doing now, you could have improved your skills and become a valuable participant.

Rating: 1.9/5 (15 votes cast)

# 23 February 2013 at 7:37 pm

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Poorna

A student of IIT Madras, Poorna enjoys good books, good conversation and good food (not necessarily in that order). She doesn't know yet what she wants out of life, but labors under the happy delusion that she can be anything she wants to be.