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Over the years, Bollywood has brought about significant changes in its portrayal of women in cinema. Through powerful stories, the film industry has highlighted the creative acumen of women in cinemas. We made a list of the movies that celebrated the true essence of womanhood with their powerful portrayals.
Some of these movies have changed the shape of Indian cinema, with stories that highlight male entitlement, female empowerment, and women’s safety, among other societal issues. Some of these movies are Thappad, Queen, and Highway. There are also a plethora of movies that not only highlight women’s issues but also show them in heroic roles. Some of the popular movies in this genre are Kahaani, Neerja, and Raazi. A movie like English Vinglish by Gauri Shinde turned a housewife into the protagonist of a comedy-drama.
Filmfare shares our picks of women-centric movies in Bollywood. Please note that this is not a definitive list.
Mardaani
Mardaani shows Rani Mukerjee playing the bold and powerful role of a police officer, Shivani Shivaji Roy. The filmmaker Pradeep Sarkar has portrayed an honest and fearless protagonist who puts her heart and mind into dealing with criminals. The action-packed crime thriller intensifies as Shivani stumbles into a child-trafficking ring. As she circles closer to finding the kingpin, the movie only gets more engaging. The movie is deemed to be one of the best on-screen performances by Rani Mukherjee. Her portrayal on screen is real and relatable, with some hard-hitting dialogues. She is a force to be reckoned with and lends the character power, strength, and dignity.
Queen
Kangana Ranaut plays the career-defining role of Rani Mehra, whose fiancée breaks off their relationship one day before their wedding. He cites the reason as Rani’s conservative habits. This is when Rani decides to take their pre-booked honeymoon trip alone. Once in Europe, Rani learns the importance of having a good time. She also gains confidence and agency as she makes her own decisions. The movie won six awards at Filmfare, including Best Film and Best Actress. It is also listed as one of the ten greatest Indian films of the 21st century at the British Film Institute.
Kahaani
Vidya Balan stuns the audience with her role as Vidya Bagchi in this thriller movie. The movie, co-produced and directed by Sujoy Ghosh, explores themes of feminism and womanhood. The movie begins as Vidya Bagchi sets out on a journey to find her missing husband, but keeps escalating until we find out the hidden truth. With rave reviews, the movie was not only critically acclaimed but also a commercial success. The movie won five Filmfare awards, including Best Director and Best Actress, among others.
Gangubai Kathiawadi
Alia Bhatt in this movie plays the unapologetic role of Gangubai Kathiawadi, who is forced into prostitution and later emerges as a powerful political figure. Sanjay Leela Bhansali received critical acclaim for portraying a strong female lead. The gripping story shows a young Ganga adapting to her shocking new life as a prostitute. But her fearlessness and dignity helped her emerge as a leader when she won the Kamathipura Presidential elections. With her newly found power, Gangu is then seen advocating for girls’ education and human rights for sex workers. Alia Bhatt embodies Gangubai with her immaculate acting. She received critical acclaim for her magnetic performance, and she carries the film on her own.
Thappad
Taapsee Pannu plays the role of a warm and loving wife, Amrita Sandhu in Thappad. The movie is directed by Anubhav Sinha, who brings to life the tale of a woman who values her self-respect and dignity above all else. The story progresses to an incident in which Amrita’s husband, Vikram, slaps her in front of a guest invited to her house party. We then see the bold Amrita file for a divorce on the grounds that he could not hit him, not even once. The slap opened her eyes to the fact that respect and happiness are the basic offerings of marriage, and she was not getting either. Taapsee Pannu delivered an impactful performance in the movie, which stayed with the audience even after they left the theatre. She realistically portrays the gamut of emotions that the character undergoes. Her stupendous performance won her accolades and widespread recognition for the movie.
Highway
Alia Bhatt plays the role of Veera Tripathi in this unconventional drama. Imtiaz Ali brings to the screen the story of a young girl who ironically discovers freedom after getting kidnapped. The story subtly brings up how Veera would feel caged and emotionally drained at her home, which also accounted for her childhood drama. Once kidnapped, she starts craving the journey that was very new to her. Alia Bhatt proved her acting prowess with a powerful portrayal of an honest young girl in her search for freedom. Her acting range won the hearts of the audience as she slowly transformed from being timid to gathering the confidence to confront her molester.
English Vinglish
In English Vinglish, Sridevi plays the role of Shashi, a middle-aged small entrepreneur who has dedicated her life towards the welfare of her family. Gauri Shinde brings to life the beautiful story of Shashi who gets mocked by her family because of poor English-speaking skills. She travels to the USA where she takes English classes that bring about a major shift in her confidence levels. English Vinglish marked Sridevi’s comeback to movies after a long break. The actress brought a refreshing sincerity to the movie and her natural discomfort with the language won the audience.
Raazi
The movie brings together Meghna Gulzar as the director, Karan Johar as the producer to bring forward a patriotic story that highlights Alia Bhatt’s acting prowess.The movie revolves around the story of an Indian-spy Sehmat played by Alia Bhatt and is based on the novel ‘Calling Sehmat’ by Harinder Sikka. The movie revolves around the true account of a RAW agent who gets married to a Pakistani Brigadier’s son. Once she moves to Pakistan, she tries to extract information prior to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. Raazi went on to become one of the highest-grossing films in India featuring a female protagonist.
Veere Di Wedding
Veere Di Wedding is a movie that brings together Kareena Kapoor Khan, Sonam Kapoor Ahuja, Swara Bhaskar, and Shikha Talsania to essay the roles of four young friends who celebrate togetherness despite facing problems in their personal lives. The movie captures the love and warmth between four school friends who are reuniting for a much-awaited wedding and the events that follow. Veere Di Wedding went on to become the fifth highest-grossing film of the year, and the highest-grossing film featuring female leads. It also received three nominations for a Filmfare award.
Neerja
Sonam Kapoor Ahuja plays the role of the bold and fearless Neerja Bhanot in the biographical thriller movie Neerja. Directed by Ram Madhvani, Neerja is based on true events: the attempted hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 in Karachi by a Libyan-backed terrorist organization. Sonam Kapoor showcases her mettle by playing the air hostess who alerts the pilot and thus grounds the plane. Neerja won multiple accolades and widespread recognition. It won six awards at the 62nd Filmfare Award, including Best Film (Critics), Best Actress (Critics), and Best Supporting Actress.
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