The film fraternity deserves more of Abhay Deol. And no, we are not only talking about Abhay Deol, the actor, but the way he takes a stand when needed and raises points worth pondering over is another reason why we love him. A strong headed Abhay Deol has time and again exploited the freedom of speech and expression and ended up winning our respect.?
Last time, he raised his voice and made comments on the ban of Pakistani artists and Internet could not collectively stop crushing on him. Recently, a Goa-based non-profit organisation, Video Volunteers, held a live chat with Abhay Deol and followed was a session that was great for reasons more than one.?
Abhay Deol and the team discussed patriarchy, sexism in Bollywood and everything in between. Here are the highlights of the chat that are spot on! Read on.
"Obviously, you can say that there was a sense of 'man is the protector and provider'. My attitude was that being a man I will obviously be stronger and that I will have to protect the woman I fall in love with. The idea that women do not need protection, I realised it much later in life. Women are strong enough to take care of themselves."
"The problem is in glamorizing it [stalking]. The problem is not necessarily with the filmmaker but with the system that we have to work out of. If you don't glamourise...if you don't make a hero out of him, then people will wonder why they are even watching this."
"I think women tend to write women better than men. Women directors are much more sensitive with women characters than the male directors. Not that the men can't do it, but they tend to project their idea of femininity sometimes."
"The more you hear the West do this, the more we follow. We don't necessarily put it out there first. But yes, I think it will get translated here when it is established there. That's the trend that I have seen so far. We wait for somebody else, we are not proactive on our own. The pay should depend on the job at hand but not on one's sex. The way to threaten the male ego is by threatening the women he is 'supposed to protect'."
"Women audience are considered if you make a Neerja or Queen or Kahaani. I don't think they [filmmakers] are thinking of the female audience when they are making a big blockbuster because I think we have more of a male population than a female population, and the movies that are typically formula tend to appeal to young men to have a good laugh. That's why women in their films tend to be just gorgeous, glamour models and then they have an item number."
"If most men are aggressive and chauvinistic then it takes another chauvinist to tell them to see their own ways. It won't take another woman because they won't take her seriously. That's why they are chauvinist."
"They [the women] were not Indian enough? Fine. But are you saying that whatever you are doing is Indian? If I see an Indian woman who does not fit my description of an Indian woman, then am I being an Indian by touching her or feeling her? Is that part of our culture? Where does it say that you can violate a woman's modesty because she is not behaving Indian enough? If you expect a woman to follow what the Indian norm is then why don't you follow the Indian norm of what a man's like?"
"Sometimes we are sexist without knowing it simply because of our conditioning and when someone points it out you should have an open mind to see, 'Oh is that true? Is that even possible?' And only if you are open to seeing your faults can you see them and when you do, you grow in leaps and bounds. That conditioning then just dies in a moment."