Tiger Shroff's paw in the mouth moment

If you discount a few Mardaanis, Neerjas and Pinks from the recent crop of Bollywood movies, it wouldn’t be incorrect to say that a misogynistic tone still underlines most of the Hindi film industry’s releases. Think of the item numbers, and characters being used as merely arm candy to the all-important ‘hero’ of the movie, and you’ll see what really ails women in Bollywood.

Stoking the flame once again was Tiger Shroff, who in a recent interview chose to reduce the presence of his female co-stars to mere ‘padding'’ around him. It has, understandably, sparked off yet another debate on the blatant sexism that exists in Bollywood. And it’s interesting to note that despite women-centric movies flourishing, mainstream cinema still revolves around the hero.

Movies are merely a reflection of society, and Tannishtha Chatterjee believes that the society in general must change, with regards to sexism. “We need to teach the coming generation that both the genders are equal. Also, actors and movies play a huge role in the way our society is.

So, I think when speaking on a public forum, stars need to be more responsible for what they are saying,” she says, adding that Bollywood is changing and there are great roles for women too. “Take Dear Zindagi for example, although the movie had a superstar Shah Rukh Khan, it was out-and-out an Alia Bhatt film. I’m glad that actresses are getting more meaningful and strong role. It is a slow process and one should not expect an overnight change.”

Aahana Kumra, who is part of the controversial Lipstick Under My Burkha says tha once you have more women coming into the industry, the change will be visible. “Whether Hollywood or Bollywood, women will continue to be objectified so long as their roles are only supporting that of the ‘hero’. As we see more women directors and scripts with stronger female characters, I’m sure there will be a paradigm shift,” she asserts.

It is also important to see male and female actors in the same light, asserts social media sensation Mallika Dua, “I think it is time to remove the gender connotation from the actors. It is important to focus on acting, as a craft, an art rather than just treating it like a visual appeal — if you do so actors will be reduced to mere arm-candies. It is not about man versus woman here but who is a better actor.

I'm not sure what he meant by the term padding — did he mean the fluff around him or did he mean someone who cushions him? If an actor is good with their craft, even 30 seconds of screen space is enough to show their talent. It’s important to have more involvement of female directors and actors and believe that they too can carry a film on their shoulders with equal ease. It’s about time things change.”

Feminist and theatre artist Dolly Thakore too sees a ray of hope. “There is always a male ‘hero’ who has dominated the industry, but I still feel that things are changing, with female directors and producers trying to take a different stance and make a mark. We may have old-fashioned people like Pahlaj Nihalani, but we also have directors and actors have always been sensitive to the women,” she states.

—With inputs by Namrata Srivastava