Radhika Apte revisits Shah Rukh Khan’s older films, questions how stalking was shown as romance
Here's the latest update from the Bollywood world:
Radhika Apte has spoken about how Bollywood romances influenced the way many people grew up looking at love and desire. A self-confessed Shah Rukh Khan fan, Radhika shared she was surprised and even unsettled when she went back to some of the older films she once enjoyed and noticed how often chasing a woman or ignoring her refusal was shown as romance.
Adding to this, Radhika Apte admits Shah Rukh Khan fan, but is ‘taken aback’ by his old romantic films. The male gaze in Bollywood’s golden era Radhika of late spoke to News18 about how these portrayals influenced the way she understood romance while growing up. Looking back at some of the films she once enjoyed, she shared scenes that were once seen as romantic now feel uncomfortable, especially when a woman’s refusal is treated as part of the chase.
Meanwhile, “Being tied and our pallu being taken off were the dreams we used to get as teenagers. How scary is that,” she shared. “No offence… I’m a huge Shah Rukh fan, but when I revisited some of the old films I used to like, I was really taken aback. Because when a woman says no, it’s never taken as no. Chasing a woman was romance. That’s what we wanted at that time, and it was really shocking” .
Notably, The conversation then moved beyond Shah Rukh Khan’s films. Shakun, who has directed a segment in Lust Stories 3, spoke about how desire was portrayed in older Hindi films. He brought up Raj Kapoor’s Mera Naam Joker (1970) and Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985), pointing out that while Raj was open to exploring desire, those stories were still largely told from a male point of view.
As per the latest buzz, Radhika agreed with Shakun but pointed out that the problem also lies in how women were shown on screen. She shared they were often sexualised while also being expected to fit into a narrow idea of morality and goodness.
In further updates, “But even at that time, the gaze was always male. And the women were sexualized,” she argued. “You’re putting that element down and making jokes at its expense anyway. That’s the problem — the sexualisation of women, and then by saying, ‘Don’t sexualize them’, and then calling them devi, and putting them on some pedestal of morality that you approve of. I find that problematic” .
On top of that, Radhika Apte returned to Netflix India with Lust Stories 3, which also stars Konkona Sen Sharma , Vijay Varma and Abhishek Banerjee. The anthology brings together four filmmakers, with Vikramaditya Motwane, Kiran Rao, Shakun Batra and Vishal Bhardwaj directing the stories. The ensemble cast also includes Aditi Rao Hydari, Radhika Madan, Sana Thampi, Siddharth, Ali Fazal and Gurfateh Pirzada.
Monica Yadav is a senior entertainment journalist with Hindustan Times Entertainment, based in Mumbai, with nearly 11 years of experience covering Bollywood, Hollywood and Asian entertainment, including Korean, Chinese and Thai cinema, television and music. She is among the few Indian journalists in India with a dedicated focus on Korean entertainment, including K-pop and K-dramas, and has interviewed some of the industry's biggest stars while closely tracking the rise of global pop culture. Her reporting has also taken her beyond India, where she has covered travel, culture and entertainment. Alongside her work at Hindustan Times, her bylines have appeared in several international publications. Known for her in-depth interviews, feature stories and engaging storytelling, Monica enjoys exploring the human side of entertainment. From breaking news and long-form features to music coverage, explainers and on-camera conversations with artists, she is passionate about telling stories that connect with audiences across the world. Read More
Source: Hindustan Times