Equality of Sexes

I have always believed that men or women both are equal, there’s nothing like this sex is stronger or that one weaker. That’s how I was brought up and that’s what I firmly believe too. But having said that I do feel that we need to have a day celebrating Women simply because there are obviously people around who don’t believe in equality of sexes.

Whatever my personal beliefs or experiences, I am appalled at the state of women in our country. It is awful to hear about the rise in cases of violence against women, when on one hand we are talking about us being right at top as a democracy.  We are an emerging super-power as a nation, but when you take a look at the way women are marginalised here, it also makes you think about how regressive we really are when it comes to treating women.

Contrary to what people perceive, when it comes to opportunities for women, I would say that the film industry is far more liberated than most other industries. Sure there are stray cases that one gets to hear of every now and then, but largely, this is one industry, where no one is out to put you down, just because you are a woman. And unlike the common misconception about women directors making women-oriented films, I feel both these terms are redundant. Films are films and filmmakers are filmmakers.

Honestly, you cannot make out the gender of the filmmaker by looking at the films alone. There’s a reason why these professions have no feminine terms. Directors are directors, man or woman. There’re no terms like a directress or a lawyeress or a doctoress and there’s a good reason for that. I am sure the generation before ours may not have had it easy, but things are definitely changing here.

And it’s also because the country overall is undergoing a change. And I do see that change translating for women too. It may seem limited, but the change is happening. It’s only natural. In our industry too, there’s been an evolution, but not a conscious one. I as an individual don’t like to see that women are often portrayed in a marginalised way on screen. I find it repulsive when women are shown in a relegated manner and I strongly feel that it’s very harmful too. So, as a filmmaker I try to keep my characters well-rounded. It has nothing to do with me being a woman.

It is about being sensitive to treating them as equals. I do believe that women need to be represented as equals too. It is happening in the industry where there’s now an equal representation of women with the influx of so many women at all levels. I have never felt prejudiced against here for being a woman and it’s only natural, the way to be, the way it should be. I don’t feel that we being women are at any disadvantage, we are makers of our lives.

I have always lived it on my terms so I know that it’s in our hand whether we want to take our positions as an advantage or disadvantage. And if I can do it, so can every woman. There are women who have defied all rules that have wanted them to relegate their importance, and more power to all women who’ve dared.