Mumbai: Just before the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 (CAA) took over the social media, the platform was buzzing with news reports of brutal rape and murder of young women in several parts of the country, including Hyderabad and Unnao.
Popular actress of the Hindi film industry Kajol feels it is a good thing ‘we have at least started talking about rape’ openly and that such cases are at least being reported to the police, which mostly never happened before.
“I think there is a lot being reported right now. There are a lot of talking and chatter about it (rape) right now. It is good because I am hoping it will change the mindset of the entire country and society. It’s not new. It’s been happening from time immemorial but we are talking about it today and only now we have cases being reported. That’s the good sign,” Kajol was quoted as saying by a film website.
“Conversations and debates are happening about rape and, yes, this mindset is being brought to light. Our society has been patriarchal for ages, so we have only recently started talking about it openly. We are shining a big, strong spotlight on it and, hopefully, that will burn away some of the debate around it, some of the hard angles around it. Somewhere down the line (it will) burn our ideas also, of what it means to be a woman and what it means to be a man,” the 45-year-old actress added.
Kajal asserted that there is an important change in society as far as rape and sexual harassment victims go. “Girls who are victims now mostly get support from their parents. It’s strange that parents earlier were hesitant to even bring such incidents in public, thinking about their daughter’s future and the family’s reputation. At least, now we have realised now that the shame does not lie with the victim, it lies with the perpetrator,” she said.
On the work front, Kajol will next be seen alongside hubby Ajay Devgn in Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior. She plays Maratha warrior Tanaji Malusare’s wife Savitribai.
“There isn’t much information about Savitribai Malusare or about Tanaji in history books. I didn’t know about her till we decided to do this film, and Ajay approached me to play the character. So, we have taken a bit of cinematic liberty to say what she probably would have said at that point in time. She is a very strong woman. She is a wife, a mother, Tanaji’s biggest support and a loyalist of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, just like her husband,” Kajol informed.
Directed by Om Raut, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior hits theatres January 10. The film stars Ajay Devgn, Kajol, Saif Ali Khan, Sharad Kelkar and Luke Kenny in significant roles.
Agencies