New Delhi . Radhika Apte has raised questions on the way love and desire are presented in old romantic films of Bollywood. During a conversation, the actress said that in many films made before her era, things like chasing women and ignoring their disagreements were presented as romance. He admitted that Hindi cinema has changed with time, but a lot still needs to be done in this area.
Referring to her experience of re-watching old films, Radhika said that things which were considered part of romantic fantasy in her teenage years, now seem disturbing when seen from a different perspective. He specifically mentioned situations in which a male character pursues a female despite her refusal and the story portrays this as love or attraction.
The actress also clarified that she has been a big fan of Shahrukh Khan. Despite this, he said that after re-watching some of his favorite old films, he realized that in many scenes, women's dissent was not given enough importance. According to him, it was common in films at that time to portray stalking of women as romanticism.
Radhika said that the view of women in cinema remained male-centric for a long time. Questioning the sexualisation of women, he said that on one hand they were presented in an excessively sexual manner, while on the other hand an attempt was made to hold them to higher standards of ideals and morality. According to him, it is important to understand the contradiction that exists between the two types of presentations.
In this discussion, director Shakun Batra also made reference to old Hindi cinema. Giving the example of Raj Kapoor's films, he said that even long before Shahrukh Khan came to Bollywood, efforts were made to show desire and attraction in cinema. He mentioned films like 'Ram Teri Ganga Maili' and 'Mera Naam Joker' in this context.
Radhika, however, stressed another aspect related to this approach. He said that in the films of that era, even when showing desire, the gaze was often male and women were presented from the same perspective. He said that it is not enough to consider merely showing desire or attraction in a scene as progressive, but it is also important to look at how the female character is being presented.
Radhika said that films have an impact on the thinking of the society and many times the things shown in cinema become a part of people's understanding of love and attraction. He said that if a person's lack of attention or misbehavior is considered a sign of attraction, then it may take a long time to change such perception.
Shakun Batra also said that future generations may raise different questions regarding today's films. According to him, just as old films are being viewed from a new social perspective today, similarly the presentation and stories of existing films may also be reviewed in the coming years. In the conversation, both of them emphasized that Hindi cinema has come a long way, but there is still scope for continuous change in storytelling to suit the changing understanding of women, men and the entire society.