From Rahul Ravindran’s call to Farah Khan’s defiance, one truth stands out — Indian cinema needs more women shaping its vision: Reports
Actor-turned-director Rahul Ravindran sparked a timely conversation with his film The Girlfriend, featuring Rashmika Mandanna in the lead. Ravindran feels Telugu cinema needs bigger female stars and more women behind the camera.
Samantha Ruth Prabhu agrees with Rahul Ravindran. “Whether it is Telugu or Hindi cinema, the industry is driven by masculine guidelines. We can’t change that in a hurry. But we can certainly make a difference by saying No to secondary treatment. Whether it is pay parity or the importance of the female presence in the script, we women shouldn’t step back.”
Choreograper-turned-director Farah Khan feels the same way. “I think it is stupid when people box directors into genders. I find it taking feminism back, because I’m a director, and my gender has nothing to do with it. I did Main Hoon Na. If you remove my name, who’s to know that it’s directed by a woman? So, it is stupid to expect that a woman will make a certain type of movie. I’ve never had a problem with budgets or getting heroes to agree to be directed by me.”
Gauri Shinde made a female-centric blockbuster. “When I made English Vinglish I made sure Sridevi got what she deserved. There was no compromise on that score. Then I made Dear Zindagi, directing the biggest star of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan. It was no different than directing Sridevi. So if your question is, do I feel discriminated against, the answer is No. It all depends on how you allow patriarchy to treat you. If you don’t allow yourself to be bullied, you won’t be.”
Tanuja Chandra, who has directed the stars from Akshay Kumar and Sanjay Dutt to Irrfan Khan and Kartik Aaryan, has a different experience, however. She feels there is a distinct prejudice against women directors. “It would be delusional to say women are not discriminated against in any walk of life. Why should the entertainment industry be any different? I was made to feel grateful that the big stars worked in my films,” she says.
