2022 is about to end, a year that has been nothing short of a train wreck, marked by a pandemic, social unrest, bush fires, floods, locust swarms, murder hornets, videos of UFO sightings released by the Pentagon, untimely celebrity deaths, gas leaks, and a deadly explosion, among a thousand other terrible events. This year, a lot has changed.
The primary film industry in India is Bollywood cinema, which has its headquarters in Mumbai. Bollywood movies are produced in Hindi, and they account for 43% of all box office receipts in India. Bollywood movies are best known for their length (averaging around 2-3 hours per film), blending of various genres into a single film (especially romance and action), and frequently breaking out into an unrealistic song and dance that, while unrealistic, is still colorful and entertaining. Bollywood movies may be vibrant, animated, and enthusiastic,
The old cultural ideal that men are superior to women is at the heart of the narrative in classic Bollywood movies. The female characters in traditional Bollywood movies lack autonomy and independence. Their father in particular frequently rules them, highlighting the patriarchal nature of Indian society. They frequently face threats when they rebel, such as when they fall in love with someone the family disapproves of. However, many contemporary Bollywood films no longer conform to this stereotype and females are often permitted a greater sense of freedom, although not as much as their male counterparts.
The gender hierarchy is pervasive throughout the whole entertainment business, not only in Bollywood movies. The pay for women is less than that of men. Despite the parts being equally important, Bollywood actors are paid five times more than their actress co-stars, according to Forbes. Priyanka Chopra said she "still used to getting paid - like most girls throughout the world - a lot less than the boys" in an interview with Glamour. In an interview with the BBC, Chopra stated that while movies with female leads often earn less than a fourth of what movies with male leads do at the box office. According to Chopra, Bollywood needs to combat the "weak stereotype" of the "subservient" mother, sister, and girlfriend.
Bollywood movies occasionally depict mental health, but instead of raising awareness or illuminating solutions, this representation serves as a checkbox exercise and a hook to get audiences to theaters. Anjaana Anajanni is an illustration of this; it tells the tale of two strangers who try suicide but end up falling in love, producing a romanticized film rather than a realistic examination of mental illness and suicide. Other movies label mental illness as crazy and use characters that are meant to be laughed at rather than taken seriously.
In addition to poor screen-based representations of mental illness, actors' and actresses' mental health is frequently ignored. Sushant Singh Rajput, a 34-year-old Bollywood actor who tragically committed suicide because of the rigours of the business he was in, brought this issue to light recently.
Unfortunately, mental health is still seen as taboo in Indian society, and depression and anxiety don't even have names in Indian languages; they are just not talked about. However, several celebrities in Bollywood are speaking out about mental health by sharing their own stories. Examples include Deepika Padukone and Anushka Sharma, who made public their experiences with depression.
NEPOTISM
In Bollywood, fame and fortune often take precedence over talent. Children of actors have an advantage in breaking into and succeeding in the business, leaving others who weren't born into an acting family far behind. Similar to the previous problem, there isn't much opposition to this one either. Those who do speak out against nepotism run the risk of being silenced and derided, which further harms their chances for a successful career in such a challenging field.
Despite the fact that nepotism makes it tougher for actors and actresses to advance, some have refuted this by citing the instances of leading actresses Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra, who are at the top of their fields but did not have a prior connection to the profession.
Colourism
In addition to all of that, skin colour appears to be a significant problem in Bollywood. Although there are many different skin tones in India, from lighter tones to darker colours, the majority of actors and actresses have fair complexion. Bollywood has come under fire for allegedly discriminating against those with darker skin tones, and this is further supported by the inclusion of actresses in advertisements for skin-lightening cosmetics. In an advertisement for the Unilever face cream called "Fair and Lovely," which lightens the tone of your skin, the well-known actress Aishwarya Rai was featured. The promotion of pale skin as a sign of goodness and beauty, especially emanating from prominent Bollywood actors, had negative repercussions.
