Kriti Sanon recently completed a decade in the film industry. Over the years, she has expanded her horizons beyond acting, establishing herself as an entrepreneur and producer as well. The actress, who has headlined several women-led films, spoke to Filmfare about the evolving space for female-centric stories in Hindi cinema and whether the industry has truly changed.
Sharing her thoughts, Kriti said, “It is changing; it’s a slow change though. A long time ago, in the era of Madhuri Dixit and Sridevi and even Meena Kumari, women had meaty roles and led films. Then there was a dip in the middle where there wasn’t much for a female actor, characters were written as love interests without backstories. We are changing back to writing layered roles for women. And to characters which are no longer written from a male gaze. A lot of female actors are hungry to choose such roles.”
However, she believes there is still a long way to go. The Cocktail 2 actress continued, “We still have way more male-centric films but it is changing. I just wish for a day where it’s not termed “female-oriented”. Even a film driven by a female protagonist should have the same budget as a male-driven film. That’s when we’ll reach true equality. The budget should be for the story, not for who is leading the film.”
Kriti also addressed the issue of pay parity in the industry and acknowledged that a significant gap continues to exist between male and female actors.
She added, “There is a huge gap between what a female actor gets and what a male actor gets. That gap will reduce because now, it’s no longer just the star who guarantees a good opening, it’s also the story and the content. People want to go to the theatre for content. When a female-driven film is given the same scale and budget as a male-driven film, it will look larger than life. A man always has this “larger-than-life” entry; if you make a female-driven film that way, it will attract more viewers and make money, which will equalise pay parity.”
Read the full cover story here: Cover Story: Kriti Sanon On Cocktail 2, Comparisons With Deepika Padukone and Constant Reinvention
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