“Actresses doing regressive roles baffles me”

Director ASHIMA CHIBBER tells PRATISHTHA MALHOTRA that a woman rescued by a man concept does not occur to her – and change is definitely in the air.

What’s gender got to do with it? Turning director happened very organically. My father has been a professor so I come from a very liberal background. It was completely a creative call because I knew that I wanted to do filmmaking but I realised that I wanted it to be my career much later in my life. I have been a first AD and have worked with directors who are absolutely neutral when it comes to gender. Once someone asked me while I was assisting, ‘Will you do costumes for the film as we want a girl to do costumes?’ I was like, ‘Should I slap you now or in private?’ All the big designers that we have are men but when it comes to costumes for a film, it has to be a woman? The tragic element Most of the stories of interesting women, even in our literature, are always about women who are in some sort of turmoil and I think that is where the attitude is coming from. You know, they would get married younger, nobody would really care about their happiness, there was this Sati business going on 200 years ago. So the baggage of the perception of women is something which is embroiled in something or the other. Maybe in those days women were also like that whether it was RUDALI or SUJATA… These were the films which were women-centric. In the ’70s we had the era of Maushmi Chatterji and there were funny girls. I mean, Neetu Singh, Hema Malini… they were so funny. But I don't think there is that perception at all now, I mean QUEEN was made by a man and she (Kangana Ranaut) was funny by just being herself. Regressive choices It is about women seeing themselves through a man’s eye. ‘If he endorses me, then I must be really good.’ That is what the concept is, it’s why these women are always cut and paste. They don't have a pyramid structure for themselves. I mean, I have different paradigms, I promote World Peace and Green Peace and if you think beyond yourself… Rather than pleasing yourself go please the environment! I mean, if you have been born, atleast do something and go. It is what you think of yourself and what the filmmakers think of themselves that is projected in films. I don't know how actresses choose to do these roles (regressive parts in commercial blockbusters). It baffles me. Very sadly so, Sonakshi is taken as the epitome of this kind of woman whereas she was more entertaining in LOOTERA. She had such a great character to play, so why would she choose to be this regressive woman? Also what happens with the actresses is we would never know what kind of pressure they are under. The pressure to appeal and appease is very high and it is very important for them to be accepted by people and acceptance comes with whose hand you are on. They are under a lot of pressure to choose and to choose strategically. They also have a career to make, houses to run. I think these are the things that propel them to make these kinds of choices. I don't understand these choices but then I am a very liberated woman. Mothers need to change Apart from that education for women from all walks of life is very important. Men need to change and also mothers need to see how they are bringing up their sons - then only can women have a better time. Otherwise right now the condition of women in this country is appalling. You and I are the ultra privileged as we come from educated families and speak in English but that just makes 00.1% of the entire country. There are so many women with a lot of potential but with no scope for education. There are a lot of stories out there but what about accessibility? Maybe there are brilliant filmmakers out there, but they will never get that chance. You know, we don't have sex education in this country so a lot of men think what is represented in films to be the impression of a woman. That’s also because we are not a reading country. Internet usage is mainly limited to googling porn so the mentality is to think that women are there to serve men. That is what we reiterate when we watch films. I have a huge problem with that.