Vulva or Vagina? Let’s Understand The Difference

Written By: Shweta Singh

September 11, 2022

Highlights

1. What is the difference between Vagina and Vulva?

2.What’s is Vagina’s anatomy?

3. What does your Vulva and Vagina do?

4. Why is important to ensure the correct usage of vulva and vagina ?

5. Do you need to take care of your vagina and vulva externally?

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We learn and talk about basic human anatomy so easily but do we talk our sexual parts such as vulva and vagina? It’s about time to shed the shame and hold an absolute conversation about female genitalia, learn the difference, and correct usage. Starting with the basics – Do you know the difference between Vulva and Vagina? You might be using the latter word more often to address your genitalia as a whole. Guess What – Vulva and Vagina are two different parts of your genitalia’s anatomy.

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All of us fondly remember the time when we freshly learned about human anatomy at school or at home. Rightly recognizing the hands, legs, forehead, ears, mouth, tongue, feet, etc. made us nothing short of smart kids. But seldom we were taught about our sexual parts like the Vagina and Vulva. Shame Shame, down there, pee place became a byword for our genitals.

It’s about time to shed the shame and hold an absolute conversation about female genitalia, learn the difference, and correct usage. Starting with the basics – Do you know the difference between Vulva and Vagina? You might be using the latter word more often to address your genitalia as a whole. Guess What – Vulva and Vagina are two different parts of your genitalia’s anatomy.

To what part exactly should I call vulva?

Hey! That is an easy one to learn about. The vulva is actually the outer part of your genitalia. It includes the pubic mound, the labia majora and minora, the pleasure factory, Clitoris, The urethral opening, and the vaginal opening.

Let’s get to the details

Pubic Mound

Pubic Mound or mons pubis is an upside-down triangle-shaped mound. It is made up of fatty tissues that extend from the top of the pubic hairline to the clitoris. An area that starts growing hair patches right from puberty.

Labia Majora

Labia Majora is the two folds that extend from the pubic mound and merges with the perineum skin. Commonly known as the outer lips of the vagina these can be pink, brown or red in color.

Labia Minora

Labia minora is the inside part of the vagina that begins from the clitoris and ends at the vaginal opening. It has varying lengths and colors.

Clitoris

The pea-shaped erogenous organ capable of sexual stimulation. It is situated at the top of the vagina above the urethra. A bundle of nerves that expands the farthest and can vary in size.

Urethral opening

Commonly called the pee hole. It is situated beneath the clitoris from where the urine comes out.

Vaginal opening

Situated between labia majora and minora and below the clitoris and urethra.

Is there some perfect shape of the vulva?

If you believe there is a perfect shape for the vulva then thanks to porn and pop culture for distorting the reality. Indeed there is no perfect shape of the vulva. Every vulva is of different shape, color, and size. Your vulva of whatever shape, size, and the color is perfectly normal.

What is the Vagina then?

The Vagina is an elastic muscular canal that extends from the vulva to the cervix. It is a passage where the lining of the uterus is shed during menstruation and the baby descends during birth.

What does my Vagina do?

Your vagina is an amazing multi-tasker. It does not create a passage for period blood to flow out of the body and helps in childbirth but also enables sexual pleasure.

Pleasure: The Vaginal walls are extremely sensitive and enable sexual pleasure with the help of a penis, finger or a sex toy.

Menstruation: The period blood along with other menstrual waste flushes out of the body through the vaginal canal. During the periods we insert tampons and menstrual cups inside the vagina to prevent leakage.

Pregnancy: During sex if your partner ejaculates the sperms swim through the vaginal canal and uterus to reach the fallopian tubes and fertilize the eggs.

Childbirth: The baby descends into the Vagina from the uterus to finally make it out of the body through the vaginal opening.

How do I use these terms correctly?

While talking about inserting something inside of the vagina like a penis, sex toy, tampon or menstrual cup make sure to use the term vagina while the outer parts of your genitalia visible through naked eyes will be called the vulva.

How do I keep my vulva and vagina clean?

Your Vagina is a self-cleaning organ that do not need any perfumed soap or feminine hygiene product to clean themselves. Your vagina is as self-reliant as you are. It maintains a good pH balance that keeps the bacteria at bay. The vagina is lined with a mucous membrane. The mucus that it produces during the menstrual cycle protects it against any harmful bacteria and infection.

Whereas the vulva has another cleaning mechanism. The hair patch on the pubic mound prevents dirt and pathogens from entering the genitals Thus, need not bother shaving your vulva every now and then. However, you can clean it with warm water and mild soap at times.

Remember, taking care of your genitals and talking about it by using explicit terms such as vagina, vulva, etc helps you build a healthy relationship with your body and smash the taboo around sexual health.

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sexual health Vagina Vulva

Shweta Singh

A Writer, who sometimes lends voice to audio book and loves to be on camera. An avid reader with a penchant for storytelling on camera.

How Bollywood Has Distorted Our Ideas of Sexuality and Body Image

Written By: Sindhu Kambam

April 13, 2021 | 04:34 PM |

678

Highlights

Bollywood’s idea of sexuality has far-reaching consequences on India’s social fabric.

The impression of sexuality and body image as shown in Bollywood films tend to implant wrong ideas in their minds and mislead them.

Not only women but men too have become the victims of these notions of appealing body image and sexuality.

An international study finds that women in Indian movies are made to emphasize their sex appeal but are unlikely to have professions.

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We all love Bollywood and most of us even dream of becoming a Bollywood actor or actress. Everything in our daily lives from the way we dress, speak, behave, the style we choose to the way we think has been impacted by the cinemas.

We even see little kids dancing to the songs such as Chikni Chameli from Agneepath and Sheila Ki Jawaani from Tees Maar Khan. This shows the intensity of the impact created by Bollywood on young Indians and our society.

Cinema has far-reaching consequences on the young minds of Indians and Bollywood’s portrayal of women has been stereotypical for way too long.

The depiction of misogyny in Bollywood is hardly a new problem and is deeply rooted in the industry. Kabir Singh, for instance, though criticized for the way it portrayed an abusive relationship as a form of love was one of the highest-grossing movies of 2019.

These movies have made some people fear that it would inspire or even drive people to unacceptable behavior and may promote the dangerous idea that sexual harassment is acceptable.

Most of the youth have forgotten to embrace their bodies. Not everyone’s body type is the same nor has the same skin tone all over their body. It is important to remember that it is their professional necessity that makes the actors take special care to maintain even skin tone and look beautiful to attract the audience.

It’s time for all of us to take the responsibility to inculcate realistic cultural values among the young minds so that at least the next generation would know the reality and show respect towards others as well as themselves.

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Since its inception in the 1930s, Bollywood has been the go-to place for entertainment for a large fraction of the Indians.

Do these kids know the meaning of those songs?

The lyrics of some of these songs go from bad to worse. Have you ever realized that most Bollywood songs that you rocked to so happily as a child were disgustingly sexist?

How do these kinds of songs and movies influence millions of young and old minds, across urban and rural India?

Bollywood films have a great impact on one’s perception of sexuality and body image. Bollywood films are indeed sold on women for they focus on objectifying women, but these methods adopted to portray women are not only limited to the screen but have a social impact too.

Misogyny is not a new thing in Bollywood

Cinema has far-reaching consequences on the young minds of Indians and Bollywood’s portrayal of women has been stereotypical for way too long.

For a long time, Bollywood romances have solely been an expression of male desire with women having no say. They are portrayed as eye-candy and hyper-sexualized in most of the advertising posters to attract the audience and added to the fuel are the item songs where a female in revealing and modern clothes dances amid a pack of men.

It is very common in commercial films that female characters are objectified as mere sexual objects without intellectual capability, while men are portrayed as strong, professional, and intellectual, and heroic.

“An international study finds that women in Indian movies are made to emphasize their sex appeal but are unlikely to have professions.”

Women are usually portrayed as sexual objects in Indian films and are mostly used for supportive and decorative roles as is evident in Kabir Singh and most Indian films.

Are Bollywood makers fully aware of glorifying and promoting misogyny in relationships?

These movies have made some people fear that it would inspire or even drive people to unacceptable behavior and may promote the dangerous idea that sexual harassment is acceptable. The success of this kind of movie which glorifies misogyny shows that there is still a long way to go to bring a change in the perception of sexuality among young Indians.

Showcase of Body Image

Movies have always been a very effective means of communication and the impression of sexuality and body image as shown in Bollywood films tend to implant wrong ideas in their minds and mislead them.

The female actor is shown beautiful and attractive with a light skin tone and a perfect body which makes the hero get attracted towards her. This portrayal of the women in Bollywood films has led many young girls to achieve the unrealistic beauty standards of the female actors going through the painful process of waxing and other beauty care with the desire to look attractive in the eyes of their partner.

Not only women but men too are the victims of these notions. Bollywood hero is objectified as a tall person with a chiseling physique and without body hair and fat. Most of the men are under hidden pressure to feel good about their bodies and attract their partners.

While some filmmakers are trying to change the depiction of sexuality in Indian films, yet there is much to be done to have empathy and sensibility towards real women and the problems they face.

Bollywood’s idea of sexuality has far-reaching consequences on India’s social fabric. The actors need to realize that overemphasis of sexual scenes can have a huge impact on the young girls and boys and should have the courage to turn down the characters that objectify women with negative body image.

Body Image bollywood Bollywood actors Bollywood films cinema misogyny Sex appeal sexuality