Actress Rani Mukerji has shared her vision to represent women correctly in Hindi cinema. She said that women are the backbone of a family and the society and that she has a responsibility to show this to people across the world.
Rani says, "As an actor, your vision for cinema and roles will constantly evolve but one thing that's constantly stayed for me is the way I wanted to portray and represent women on screen. Women are the backbone of a family and the society, and I think, as an actor, I have a responsibility to show this to as many people as possible across my country and the world."
She added: "Cinema can have a lasting impression on the minds of people. It is a very powerful tool to trigger a national conversation and I became conscious very early on in my career that I could make a real change in the way women are projected on-screen, that could be positive."
Rani wanted to show girls as fiercely independent and self-reliant in films.
She says, "I made it a point to choose films where the girl is also pivotal to the plot, where the girl is projected with dignity and power."
"For me, women have always been agents of change. They have been independent, courageous, caring, pursuers of dreams and the best multitasker you can ever find. I wanted to highlight these facets of a woman by choosing characters that echo this belief system of mine."
Rani adds, "So, if you see films like 'Black', 'Veer Zaara', 'Mardaani' series, 'Yuva', 'No One Killed Jessica', 'Hichki' or even my latest film 'Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway', to name a few, the girls I play are central to the plot, the sheroes that people have adored and accepted for being who they are."
In her last release, 'Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway (MCVN)', Rani again played a fiesty woman who took on a country to win back her children. The film was a resounding hit at the box-office and it brought back belief that content cinema could pull in people to theatres in this post pandemic world.
Rani says, "The fact that MCVN is a hit today is because people want to see strong woman protagonists like this on the big screen. There is constant chatter whether women-centric films are box office draws? That concerns me, of course they are box office draws."
"A film is a hit when producers make money from it and it is not just about how much it collects at the box-office because one should also factor in the cost of the film."
She adds, "There is a lot of misconception about what a hit means and I think people should pay attention to this before passing judgement if a film is profitable. A good film will always bring people to the theatres and their gender has no role to play."
