Bollywood’s Problematic Portrayal of Women: From Objectification to Unrealistic Beauty Standards
Bollywood plays a vital role in the everyday life of most of the Indian population. Occasions and events are considered to be incomplete without the element of Bollywood. Celebrities in the industry are highly followed and also worshipped by many. Many artists and actors have helped gain Bollywood fame through their outstanding performances and pieces, yet it cannot be said that Bollywood has an appropriate representation of issues. The proper depiction of sex scenes has never been done in Bollywood because it is considered to be a taboo in society. Filmmakers and producers aim to earn a profit after the movie’s release, and they know that the audience finds sex scenes attractive. Hence, they have adopted a technique of not showing sex scenes explicitly but instead depicting them through stereotypical item numbers that lead to the sexualisation and objectification of women.
In Indian cinema, the objectification and sexualization of women have become so ordinary that it is difficult to envision a movie without the obligatory item number or a moment where the lead female wears a seductive costume. Women’s roles are frequently limited to their physical attributes and sexuality in most movies, where they are seen as little more than objects of desire. The way women are shown in film perpetuates the notion that a woman’s value is derived from her appearance and that she can only be worthwhile if she can draw men. In addition to reducing women’s worth, this representation creates misconceptions about women that restrict their options and possibilities. Apart from being objectified, women are frequently presented as weak and defenceless, which reinforces the stereotype that women require males to save them.
Youngsters born in the early and late 1990s were familiar with this scene: two sunflowers replaced the faces of the hero and heroine. Not a single kiss, which is thought to be a sign of love, was depicted in the films. Subsequently, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, extravagant song and dance scenes featuring a hero and heroine were viewed as a means of expressing love. Bollywood’s love scenes started to become more and more problematic over time. Somehow, having sex scenes meant constantly exposing more of a woman’s skin. There was a lack of the ability to depict love more authentically. Women were portrayed with their saris barely revealing their waists and their bikini tops, which served only to highlight the women’s bodies as commodities. Indian culture is deeply ingrained in weddings, and Bollywood has never stopped depicting this on screen.
“The suhag raat scene” was one significant sequence that had almost come to be associated with Bollywood movies. These sequences were hugely popular and practically standard in Bollywood films from the 1970s. The husband’s friends are pushing the spouse into the room, but not before offering him advice on what to do and how to do it (sex). Since the stereotype that a wife has no right to decline sex with her husband is well-engrained in our brains, these situations were difficult by nature. It demonstrates how the husband must rule his wife’s body like a fort! Bollywood movies have influenced how people view their bodies as well as our conceptions of sexuality. The bodies of the actors in intimate encounters are “perfect.” The actress, who has a hairless body, frequently wears matching lingerie. As a result, young girls are attempting to meet unattainable beauty standards.
Everybody has a different physical type. Some people have uneven skin tones and body hair. Not everyone has the same skin tone all over their body. The beauty and Bollywood industry has significantly benefited from the constant portrayal of this ideal image in Bollywood films. The majority of women have lost touch with their natural selves and instead rush to wax, thread, and even get a bikini wax before having their first sex. The motivation behind this is straightforward: they want to feel good about their bodies and themselves in their partner’s eyes, which makes them want to look beautiful in their eyes as well. How women are portrayed in Indian movies significantly affects real life. Women are objectified in society as well as in film. Young boys and girls learn that it’s okay to treat women like objects from the objectification of women in movies. This results in discrimination, harassment, and violence against women. It’s time for the Indian film industry to own up to the messages it’s conveying and to stop stereotyping women in movies. Women’s characters should acknowledge that they are more than just objects of desire. Filmmakers should aim to create strong, self-reliant female characters who may act as role models for young girls.
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