"Women are not supposed to be whitewashed"
Bollywood actress Bhumi Pednekar has voiced her concern on the way women are treated within the industry.
Over the years, Bollywood celebrities have come forward to campaign for different social causes.
Bhumi has been breaking barriers within the industry and has been praised for bringing in diversity.
However, she explained that female characters are whitewashed on screen and there is a need to change that issue.
She said: “We need to change the depiction of genders. We need to change how we show women and men.
“Women are not supposed to be whitewashed – we have desires, we have ambition, we have physical needs and emotions, and we have the capacity to balance.
“I believe women have superpowers. I think we need to see a lot more of that in our cinema.”
Bhumi went on to say that there needs to be a change in the way men are portrayed on screen also.
She added: “Similarly, we must alter the way men are shown in films.
“We put so much pressure on the male gender, telling them that they are supposed to be strong, that they can’t cry, can’t show emotion.
“That is so wrong. This narrative – ‘mard ko dard nahi hota’ or ‘a man doesn’t hurt’ – needs to change.”
Bhumi stated that cinema has a huge impact on its audience and it can be used to change the mindset of people in the most positive way. She said that there is great work currently happening within film.
The actress said: “I also believe we need to stop objectifying women and there needs to be a lot more inclusivity in films, including the LGBTQIA+ community.
“I know change is in the air. I just wish we could accelerate it.
“Like, I just watched Super Deluxe and I couldn’t believe what I was watching. There’s such great work happening today and I feel lucky to be part of the Hindi film industry at this point.”
On the work front, Bhumi Pednekar will next be seen in Durgavati alongside Mahie Gill and Arshad Warsi. The project is still in the filming stage and is set for a 2020 release.
Bhumi will also star in Shashank Khaitan’s Mr Lele opposite Varun Dhawan. The film is about a Marathi NRI who takes ecstasy at a night club and within the next 48 hours he ends up behind bars. The release date of the film has not yet been revealed by the makers.
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