We’ve all grown up watching movies and fantasised about being the protagonist of our own stories. It’s only recently that that illusion came to an end when Hollywood got engulfed in a myriad of controversies regarding Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and many more. However, since these revelations have motivated Bollywood actresses to open up about the problems they face in their careers, Divya Dutta thinks this is a change for good.
In an interview with Indian Express, Divya Dutta opened about the complexities of working in Bollywood, the uprising among young actresses and why naming names is a double-edged sword.
“Now, everyone has started talking about it. Yes, they are not naming people, and I am sure they have their reasons not to name because you need a huge amount of unity to take names as no one wants to get secluded from work or be told to be out of the system.”
After Divya’s first hit with Veergati, the veteran actress gave tremendous performances in movies like LOC: Kargil, Veer-Zaara, Umrao Jaan and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. However, many didn’t share the same amount of luck as her.
Recently, actresses like Daisy Irani and Pooja Chopra have spoken up about sexual harassment in Bollywood. However, Divya Dutta thinks those voices are stifled as nobody is ready to stand beside them.
“It is sad. What we do is we ask them to speak but are we giving them a back-up? When you have a back-up, I am sure a lot of people will speak.”
In addition to that, when asked about whether she was ever propositioned, Divya revealed the ugly truth behind getting mainstream roles in Bollywood.
“I will be lying if I say no. Every woman has been propositioned at some point or the other. But I was never directly propositioned but I lost a lot of movies because I didn’t have a sugar daddy and somebody else did.”
Standing up to the patriarchal system isn’t an easy job, and Divya has done that for 24 long years. That’s why every actress in the industry should take her example and take control of their lives.
“But it’s a process of learning. I am glad it didn’t happen (to her) because today, I am in a very different position. And it wouldn’t have happened if I had a different journey.”
The Hindi film industry is a workplace like every other sector in our country. However, for some reason there’s an eerie silence around when it comes to sexual harassment. While Hollywood is making radical changes for women, Bollywood should follow suit and take necessary measures to provide a healthy environment for its actresses.
