Subhash K Jha speaks to Telugu cinema’s Nandini Reddy, in a very open conversation, about the sexism and more that is part of the entertainment industry.
What do you have to say about some actor called Sivaji givng gyan to women on how they should dress?
In a nation where a convicted rapist gets let off by a court and the victim is dragged away by police , people choose to give lectures on how women should dress modestly to avoid ‘inviting disaster’!!! Why does anything else surprise us or even matter, Sir . This is what we have become as a nation and what women’s safety has been reduced to. This is all I have to say.
So true. You are speaking about the Unnao rape case?Why don’t more women with a voice like yours speak up? Is it fear or just nonchalance?
It’s both, Sir. For men and women, We have become apathetic and fearful. We have become like the countless people who watch a road accident and do nothing to help the victims. That’s what is scary.
Very scary, sexism and misogyny are a part of every Indian film industry but no one speaks up against the big offenders. For fear of losing job opportunities?
It’s not the industry alone Sir it’s everywhere…. Probably even worse. How many people have spoken out against the unnao rape issue? Are we not watching the news? We have just got used to the stench . Nothing shakes us any more. Till I am affected or my family is affected nobody will react. That is the scary part.
About what happened in the Dileep case, do you feel it would encourage more misogyny?
Everything that happens each day in the country promotes misogyny and applauds it . This is not a safe country for women. No clean air, no safety, no justice in courts ….. not a safe country for anyone, Sir.
Do you realize you are the only prominent female filmmaker in Telugu cinema? Isn’t that indicative of the prevalent gender bias?
Sir, let’s not reduce the dialogue to such a small dimension….. filmmakers have been there , are there and will come . The industry is not separate from the rest of the country. Whatever happens there happens here too.
