What is your opinion on feminism in bollywood?

We are reading and hearing a lot about feminism off lately. So what is it about? Basically, feminism means women’s liberation or advocacy for the rights of women. However, it is being misunderstood by the bollywood industry these days. They are concluding it with equal pay and equal rights when the concept is actually beyond par.

Feminism stands as a magnified wave in today's scenario. Initiated by "Elaine Showalter", it now comes up in a highly misinterpreted notion than what it was supposed to be. Feminism precisely, demands gender equality to help women come at par with the patriarchal norms of the society and cope up with the stigma of the second sex, which they have been subjected to since times immemorial.

Bollywood, stands as a major influence and therefore, it tends to take up what so ever is "trending" as its major subject. It must not be ignored that the film fraternity is indeed one major flag bearer of Male chauvinism,and thus, when such an industry faces women who are just not dolled up to be the "Chikni Chamelis" and "Munnis", and rather have a voice of their own, they are- "BAFFLED".

What concerns me most is not the fact that movies like "Veere di Wedding" and "Lipstick Under my Burkha" faced oppression, but the curiosity, that why wasn't such an aggressive outlook shown towards "Gangs of Wassepur" or "Grand Masti"??

Women in Indian media, are only supposed to be the "Bandini" and "Paro" who wait as a damsel in distress, waiting for their price charming, who would in turn be their "pati Parmeshwar" no matter how useless he might be. He has to be worshiped for being "The Man".

The outspoken sexuality isn't the right of women in this country, where they are not yet "permitted" to breathe an air of Independence, how can we expect a whole lot of revolution in the three hours of silver screen hypocrisy?

Therefore, in my opinion, the problem is not in the 'content' of these movies, but with the 'narrow minded' Indian society, which can never come at par with the fact of women, being as human as men are.

Feminism in Bollywood is a mix of real progress and surface-level storytelling, and both exist at the same time.

On one hand, there’s been a clear shift. Films like Queen, Pink, and Thappad actually tried to explore women’s independence, consent, and everyday sexism in a meaningful way. These stories felt more grounded and showed women as complex individuals, not just love interests or background characters. That’s real progress compared to older Bollywood where female roles were often limited.

But at the same time, there’s also a lot of “performative feminism.” Some films package feminism as a trend rather than a genuine message. You’ll see strong one-liners, bold characters, and “independent woman” aesthetics, but the story itself still revolves around male validation or follows the same old stereotypes underneath. It looks progressive on the surface, but doesn’t go deep.

Another issue is consistency. Bollywood can make a film about empowerment in one moment and then release songs or scenes in other films that still objectify women. So the industry feels a bit conflicted.

Overall, feminism in Bollywood is evolving, but it’s still in a transition phase.
There are genuinely powerful stories being told, but alongside them, there’s still a tendency to turn feminism into a marketing angle instead of a mindset.

If anything, the audience today is more aware, so films that fake it don’t land as well anymore.