Strong is the new sexy, show Bollywood women
That Katrina Kaif is a looker is hardly news; what impressed viewers about her performance as Zoya in Tiger Zinda Hain (2017) was her combat skills and strong physique. The actor, who enjoyed this “new challenge”, shared workout videos online, giving people a glimpse of her sweat and toil.
“Yeah, it’s scary but great fun. I’ve only done very feminine delicate roles so far. It is a new challenge for me. I guess that’s what I’m looking for at this stage of my career,” she said in an earlier media interview. Other leading ladies in Bollywood who’re taking action seriously are Jacqueline Fernandez in Race 3; Shraddha Kapoor in Saaho; Kangana Ranaut in Manikarnika; and Alia Bhatt in Brahmastra.
“These are all demands of the script” and these roles require actors to be fighting fit, says trade analyst Atul Mohan. Also, he says, “You can do romantic films till you have age on your side, but action is something that’s not bound by age.” Action director Allan Amin says that the trend is gaining pace because of how health- and fitness-conscious Indians have become.
Shivam Nair, who directed Taapsee Pannu in the spy thriller Naam Shabana, feels that when so many women-fronted films are being made in Bollywood, action films come as “a breath of fresh air”.
Ali Abbas Zafar, director of Tiger Zinda Hai, believes that the strong women on screen are a reflection of a social evolution. “Women are no longer shown as submissive. They have bigger roles to create an impact. And they’re also working hard to make sure they look convincing on screen,” he says. He points out the work put into fitness by Katrina, Anushka Sharma for Sultan (2016), and by the actors who played female wrestlers in Dangal (2016).
Fitness trainer Kuldeep Shashi, who’s training Jacqueline for Race 3 and Mouni Roy for Brahmastra, says, “While male actors are stronger, female actors are fit and flexible, which is an advantage.”
According to both
Atul Mohan and Shivam Nair, such films inspire young girls: “When they see [female] characters fighting for their rights and also be strong enough to confront their enemies, it gives them courage to stand up for themselves.”