Take a Look at These Five Films That Honour Powerful Women within Indian Cinema

In mainstream cinema, women’s aspirations, difficulties, struggles, and longings are often overlooked. Still, the success of a slew of female-driven films shows that storytellers are evolving to keep up with the times. Here are a few movies to get you in the mood for International Women’s Day.

200 Halla Ho

Yodlee Films’ film ‘200 Halla Ho’ powerfully depicts the feelings of oppressed Dalit women and what happens when they choose to take a stand for the first time. ‘200 Halla Ho,’ dependant on a true tale in which 200 Dalit women lynched Akku Yadav, a gangster, serial rapist, robber, and killer within an open court within Nagpur in 2004, tackles an issue that has received little attention in cinema.

Thappad

Domestic abuse has become taboo in society, and films promote aggressive, egotistical males as desirable role models. Taapsee Pannu depicts a woman who has been slapped by her husband before a large gathering of people and is being gaslighted by her household into not recognizing it as a violation of her dignity. The film ‘Thappad,’ co-produced by Sinha and T-Series’ Bhushan Kumar, is regarding a woman’s self-esteem. And the video asks why we don’t rethink the fundamentals of a patriarchal culture that values a man’s ego more than a woman’s dignity even today.

Ajji

In India, rape is still a daily headline, and it is met with silence because it is considered that no woman is safe. The apathy concerning gender crimes is even more depressing when the reality is evident, it is not addressed, and injustices remain to be perpetuated. The film ‘Ajji,’ directed by Devashish Makjhija and produced by Yoodlee Films, shows how dysfunctional the system is or how helpless it is to redress a great injustice. It depicts how society looks the other way when a powerful figure commits a heinous crime.

The plot revolves around an old grandmother who refuses to take it in stride after a local politician’s son molests her granddaughter and justice is delayed. The way she avenges this horrible crime is eye-opening because it shows uncomfortable facts about our culture.

Sherni

Director Amit V Masurkar’s ‘Sherni’ wants to introduce a female protagonist who not solely faces the obstacles of mapping as well as tries to coordinate a time-sensitive wildlife mission; however, also has to come to terms with casual as well as intentional sexism all along the way, in a world in which people believe which women can’t do physically demanding jobs, as well as men, cannot do housework. In India, gender stereotypes accompany women into traditionally male-dominated professions that need survival skills, courage, and the characteristics of a bold leader. A female Indian Forest Service officer retains her integrity and voice until the finale of this T-Series production while being forced back by an inefficient system.

Pagglait

Would a lady who refuses to mourn because she is decoding the truth regarding her loveless marriage be labelled insane by a judging society, as the movie’s title implies? ‘Pagglait’ aims to figure out what death left behind and how it impacts many people in surprising ways. ‘Pagglait’ seeks to understand what death left behind and how it impacts a wide range of people in unexpected ways.