House of the Dragon foot fetish scene: How the show helped kinks go mainstream

GQ is calling the foot fetish scene from HBO’s House of the Dragon the ‘kink-of-the-moment’. Literally, everyone - from sexperts to avid watchers of fantasy shows have an opinion on the scene. Why is Alicent okay with Larys masturbating to her feet? How common is foot fetish? How many types of fetishes are there? In the Indian subcontinent where sex itself is taboo - expecting kinks - even mainstream ones like BDSM or role play to become a part of pop culture and everyday conversations in a tall order. The conversation on foot fetish, however, has already started in hushed tones. As per a report in The Times of India, Indian men spend huge amounts of money - sometimes as high as Rs 10,000-Rs 25,000 for ‘foot worship sessions’. Dominatrices around India charge huge sums for offering these services to men.

So while we Indians shrug our shoulders and feel disgusted by a Larys in _House of the Dragon_ for his sexual preference, we must know that foot fetish and feet worship is a common fantasy in India. A popular joke doing the rounds on the Internet says - ‘Being a HotD fan is shrugging your shoulders at incest but drawing the line at foot fetish’. Why, then, are we so disgusted by foot fetish - even more than incest? The Shame Around Foot Fetish Professional Dominatrix and BDSM expert Emme Witt says that she has met several men from all walks of life, from all parts of the globe, who have a foot fetish. “It’s really not so weird. We just think it is,” she says. “Still, people might feel disgusted by a foot fetish scene because there is something dirty about the feet. The thing is, dirtiness is the attraction for many foot fetishists. They find sexual satisfaction in feelings of shame”, Witt adds. Emme believes that having kinks and fetishes is completely normal and one shouldn’t judge those who have unconventional sexual preferences. “In the end, we have the duty of tolerance to just let people do their thing. If people are engaging in their foot fetishes in a consensual manner with other adults, what’s the harm?” Witt asks. “People really suffer when they have to hide their kink”, the Dominatrix adds. “They feel incredible amounts of shame about it. It’s best to just get to a place where people can be open about it and not feel like they’re perverts or like they have a mental illness for having this kink”. Witt, who is a BDSM expert, feels _Fifty Shades of Grey_ made kinks ‘trendier’. “Basically, the reason this foot fetish scene was included in this episode is because TV writers, directors, and producers feel like they constantly need to push the envelope. At a certain point, people too will feel bored by kink. It will be passé”, Witt argues. When asked why the viewers are not as disgusted by incest as they are with the foot fetish scene, Witt said “The scene is forcing us to watch an expression of unconventional sex. It doesn’t matter if the characters aren’t related. It’s disgusting because it’s not ‘normal’”. Alicent’s Sexual Abuse On the flip side, Zoya Ali, reproductive health scientist and sex educator, finds the scene problematic for a different reason altogether. “It surprised me a little that despite everything else picturised in the show, it wasn’t the lack of consent and the patriarchal tones in the scene, but the fact that the character had a foot fetish was where people drew the line. We all clearly need a lesson or two in being more sex positive”, says Ali. For the uninitiated, in the ninth episode of the first season of House of the Dragon, Alicent Hightower is forced to put her feet on display as Larys masturbates. The camera pans to Alicent’s face and it becomes painfully obvious that the act is non-consensual. Ali feels that the media, in particular, must be mindful and informed while picturing such content and be conscious of the intimacy indicators. “Misrepresenting and stigmatising someone’s sexual consensual preferences is not acceptable, and neither is normalising sexual exploitation”, Ali adds. “You can understand from the scene there is an unfair power dynamic and an evident lack of consent on Alicent’s part. You sense her embarrassment, shame and powerlessness as she realises this was the only way to get the information she was looking for”, adds Ali. She also believes that the shows and films must highlight the importance of consent and boundaries while ethically exploring kinks. “These shows can influence the public outlook on different sexual experiences, especially of young people”, Ali opines. Albeist Characterization of Larys The irony of the foot fetish scene in House of the Dragon is that the man who has a foot fetish, Lord Larys, is crippled and doesn’t have a foot. Ali cannot help but wonder if this was intentional and discriminatory in favour of able-bodied people. “Larys Strong doesn’t appear to be someone meant to be adored in the show. Could the choice of giving him this particular fetish represent how people subconsciously might have a negative outlook towards it?” asks Ali. She is, however, willing to give the writers of the show a benefit of doubt - perhaps, it wasn’t their intention to mischaracterize Strong. “Even if that may not have been the intention, one can’t help but think about the thought process behind building out this character”, she says. On the psychological process behind developing a foot fetish, Emme Witt says, “A lot of times kinks develop in youth or as a result of a traumatic incident in one’s life. It seems fitting that someone who doesn’t have a foot or has a disfigured foot would develop a sexual fascination with feet”. Witt adds that Larys’ kink might as well be shame-based. “He wants to obsess over what he doesn’t have because he feels insecure about his own shortcomings. He’s eroticized his shame”, Witt feels. Elaborating on the same, the sexpert opines, “He may feel fear about what he lacks, and so forcing himself to focus on what other people do have is a way for him to get sexual excitement while not having to really deal with how much it hurts him that he lacks a foot or has a disfigured foot”. Needless to say, House of the Dragon has sparked an important conversation - perhaps unintentionally, around kinks, fetishes and more importantly - consent. Deepansh Duggal is an entertainment, pop-culture and trends writer based in New Delhi. He specializes in op-eds based on the socio-political and gender issues in the world of entertainment and showbiz. He also writes explainers and occasionally reviews shows in the OTT space. He tweets at @Deepansh75.  Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.