Happy time for women in Indian cinema: Azmi

Veteran actress-social activist Shabana Azmi has expressed hope for women in Hindi cinema, observing that roles are becoming substantial for them and are being written for all age groups.

“I am very hopeful. I feel the roles are becoming substantial in films that are women-centric, but even within the films themselves,” Shabana said here Sunday evening at a special session of the Kolkata Literary Meet.

The multiple National Award winner highlighted the fact that the current crop of films are incorporating characters of working women, and that women artists are demanding

meatier roles. 

“Today even in gangster movies, women are working...I think there is a greater understanding within the women artists themselves where they are demanding more meat if not necessarily in terms of the length, but definitely in terms of what the character is,” she said.

Also, various age groups are being portrayed in Hindi cinema today, Shabana said.

“I think it is a very important time for Hindi cinema because roles are being written for all age groups. Earlier 30 was the end of a women’s career. But today the roles are opening up and they are available, so I do think that happy times are here,” she said.