“More and more women are writing their stories, turning them into films,” said writer-director Reema Kagti, who believes the trend brings a more “real and healthy perspective” to movies, with complex, outspoken women characters who are masters of their own story.
The world’s most populous nation churns out 1,800 to 2,000 films in more than 20 languages annually — and Hindi-language Bollywood is one of the largest segments, with more than 300 productions.
Yet the films have often failed to portray women authentically, choosing instead to box them into being passive housewives or mothers who bow to societal pressure.
A 2023 study by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) found that female characters in most chart-topping Indian films play the role of a romantic interest — and are “fair skinned with a thin body type and a small screen time”.
But industry insiders point to a slate of women-directed movies earning international acclaim that have also scored well at the tough domestic box office.
Malayalam-language film “All We Imagine as Light”, a poetic tale about two nurses forging an intergenerational friendship, was the first Indian production to win the Grand Prix at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
Director Payal Kapadia shunned the one-dimensional portrayal of women on Indian screens which tends to mimic “unrealistic standards set by society”, she said, in favour of one that allows women to “just be ourselves, authentic and true to how we are in everyday life”.
India’s official entry for the 2025 Oscars was Kiran Rao’s “Lost Ladies” — “Laapataa Ladies” in Hindi — a comedy which challenges convictions surrounding marriage and womanhood, a sign of a shift — even if it missed the final shortlist.
‘More inclusive narratives’
It is not only arthouse films that are winning hearts.
Mainstream movies with strong women co-leads are filling up theatres as well.
“Stree 2”, a horror comedy featuring Bollywood star Shraddha Kapoor, smashed box office records last year, beating earnings by superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s action flick “Jawan”.
And “Crew”, a heist comedy about flight attendants, was widely seen as a win for women-centric movies.
“Women still face challenges in telling stories from their perspective”, said actor-producer Dia Mirza.
