KOZHIKODE: Women film personalities and writers said on Friday that the sufferings undergone by women in cinema for long had transformed them into what they are today.They were participating in a discussion on 'Transforming perspectives in cinema: Through feminist lens' at the Kerala Literature Festival at the beach here. The session was attended by actor-director Revathy, actor Padmapriya, editor Beena Paul, script writer Deedi Damodaran and novelist C.S. Chandrika and moderated by Renjini Menon.
While Chandrika criticised the hesitant female, who would like to be called a humanist rather than a feminist, Revathy stressed that she would be a humanist first and feminist next. The panellists also differed on the inclusion of feminists among the males in an area where the women are allowed to present their experiences.
Chandrika praised the courage of an actress who was sexually abused in a car and said her bold stand had transformed the situation in the film industry. "Those who suffered for a long time dared to come forward and raised their voice against oppression. When they come out, the maximum oppression they face also would be from the females," said Chandrika.
Padmapriya said the least percentage of screen space was shared by the female actors, while Beena Paul explained how she was even verbally abused by the assistant directors under the notion that women are less eligible in a competitive world. "When the women in any other film industry are almost equal to men, in Malayalam only one or two women are among the crew," she said.
