The actress spoke up about the glorified misogyny in Sandeep Reddy Vanga's film.
Kabir Singh is so revered that whatever he does is celebrated: Taapsee Pannu
Mumbai - 23 Jul 2019 20:00 IST
Updated : 25 Jul 2019 16:32 IST
Sonal Pandya
Actress Taapsee Pannu has had a strong 2019 with acclaimed performances in Badla and the multi-lingual Game Over. She follows it up with roles in the upcoming Mission Mangal and Saand Ki Aankh.
In Mission Mangal, Pannu's character, Kritka Agarwal, is a scientist at Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) who is in charge of navigation and communication on the Mangalyaan mission. While her Diwali release Saand Ki Aankha has the actress ageing from a young woman to a senior citizen, albeit one who is a champion sharpshooter.
Hindi films of late have been showing women in pivotal roles and giving them more prominence in the parts that are being written for them. Which is why Pannu spoke out about the success of Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Kabir Singh (2019), starring Shahid Kapoor and Kiara Advani, which features the lead pair in a problematic and abusive romantic relationship.
"Kabir Singh and Arjun Reddy are not the only films glorifying misogyny, there are several others too but not to this extent," Pannu stated in an interview with the tabloid Mumbai Mirror. "That is one of the reasons why I do the kind of films I do, there should be a counter narrative too. I know I'll never be able to match up to the numbers of this film but that won't deter me. We are on the cusp of a change and I am not going to give up now."
"The problem is not showing flawed characters... The problem is when you glorify them and make them what they are doing seem heroic. This character is so revered that whatever he does is not just accepted, it is celebrated," she continued, making her point.
The actress added that the audience wouldn't accept a female version of Kapoor's character Kabir. "She was probably not a female Kabir Singh but Manmarziyaan's Rumi Bagga was a flawed character too and ended up losing her love and getting divorced. The same misogynist people who didn't see a problem with Kabir, booed Rumi. We aren't oblivious to the double standards of our society," Pannu observed.
