I wonder if actresses of Indian film industry have fan clubs like that of their counterparts, other than on social media. Unfortunately, the yardstick for actresses for gaining a mass appeal still hinges on factors like their mien and complexion. When I witness some of the fabulous performances from a new breed of female actors of today, I tend to believe that gone are the days when they were destined to shake legs clad in scanty attire with the so-called ‘superstars’ or ‘megastars’ (I do agree that the practice still exists in the potboilers being released during festival seasons). According to our ‘media vocabulary’, those actresses, who show more frugality in the dress code or do smooch scenes are qualified enough to be pigeonholed as ‘bold’.
Well, that’s entirely another commercial part of showbiz. Personally, I was flabbergasted in recent times to see how the new young actresses are confidently vying to make an impact solely with their acting prowess. A risk factor is involved when they become too choosey in a patriarchal industry where the oomph factor of the woman on screen is considered as one of the USPs (Unique Selling Point) of a film. It’s a good sign that a string of filmmakers are passionate about realistic movies in which they explore deeply the pangs and angst of their women characters. For them, cinematic fripperies are frivolous components that might upset the apple cart during the filmmaking process.
Unlike in the past, female actors have an authentic voice in the selection of movie projects and apparently, it is guided by their inner voice or better still the sixth sense. It is possibly the impact derived from the ‘empowerment’ slogan associated with the definition of the new-age women. Cinema too experiences a slice of such revolution as voices have started to pour in, unleashing #MeToo and other exploitations in the industry. Actors also realise that glamor quotient alone is hardly enough for survival in films now, instead, their temperament in acting matters a lot to extend their innings on screen.
Taapsee Pannu, who was a mere nubile avatar in the Telugu and Tamil films during 2010, found for herself a drastic shift in trajectory after gaining a foothold in the Hindi film industry with the film “Chashme Baddoor.” Taapsee reinvented herself perfectly as a talented performer in a brief time frame. Obviously, it’s a sort of elevation in her career that occurred as a result of a proactive approach embraced by her.
Later, Taapsee’s performances in films like “Soorma”, “Pink”, “Mulk”, “Manmarziyaan”, and “Badla” proved her versatility as an actress. In fact, Taapsee’s makeover as an actor is also fuelled by the current wave of realistic and meaningful cinemas happening in the Hindi film industry, mainly spearheaded by directors like Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Anubhav Sinha, Anurag Kashyap and Ritesh Batra et al. Luck is a major factor here for being roped in to the right script by a director, who has the penchant for innovation.
Kangana Ranaut stepped into the world of acting with the thriller ‘Gangster’. Over a decade later, she has found her own throne in the Hindi film industry, after working in blockbusters like “Queen”, “Krrish 3”, “Tanu Weds Manu” and “Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi”. Kangana has quite happily lapped up the tag of ‘enfant terrible’ due to her brazen comments on colleagues and the bad practises prevailing in the industry. On screen recognition plays a major role in ensuring the voice of female actors being reverberated at least among their fraternity. Stupendous performances help them cement their place in the filmdom, and the prominence they gain is tantamount to indirectly garnering the privilege for questioning the supremacy of any kind.
Alia Bhatt is one among the blessed actors to be cast in mature roles compared to her peers. In a short span of time, Alia has emerged as the top performer of Indian Cinema in recent years. Having a childlike innocence and mischievous smile on her face, hers is an endearing presence on screen. Films like “Highway” “Udta Punjab” and “Raazi” are powerful testimonials of her amazing talent.
Bhumi Pednekar of “Toilet: Ek Prem Katha” and “Sonchiriya” fame is another revelation in this category of actors. Her unconventional appearance as a woman in Chambal Valley in “Sonchiriya” is contrary to her role as an educated woman in “Toilet: Ek Prem Katha”. Her debut film “Dum Laga Ke Haisha”, a romantic comedy, had her as an overweight woman. Radhika Apte also has made a mark through her passionate performances in “Parched”, “Badlapur” and “Manjhi-The Mountain Man”.
Impact of ‘waves’ in South India
Like a domino effect, the conventional definition of heroines is also changing in Malayalam and Tamil films. Malayalam Cinema had the legacy of female performers, ranging from Saradha and Sheela in the 70s to Shobhana, Urvashi, and Geetha among others in the 90s. After that not many influential actresses were added to the upper crust; except to an extent, Meera Jasmine and Manju Warrier whose performances rarely ever dipped to the lowest-common-denominator standards.
A number of promising actresses came but they were unable to maintain a consistency in their career.
Manju had left viewers spellbound with her inimitable style in her first innings in the industry, but it’s doubtful if she could recreate the same magic in the second coming.
Moving ahead, how swiftly Parvathy Thiruvothu became the cynosure of mainstream cinema! From a lean college girl in the film “Out of Syllabus”, she recreated the magical impact among movie buffs like (if not better than) Manju in her heydays. The roles she took etched a different kind of girl-woman, “Bangalore Days” (2014), “Ennu Ninte Moideen” (2015), “Charlie” (2015),”Take Off” (2017) and the latest, “Uyare” (2019), to mention a few.
Despite the setbacks in the initial stages of her career and off-screen controversies, the beleaguered Parvathy, became a role model for many fresh faces in the industry. It seems Parvathy emerged as an undeniably talented actor, thanks to her effortless portrayal of powerful and mawkish characters alike.
With abundance of talent and dedication, she has proved the value of commitment and set an example for others to emulate. If “Notebook” had Parvathy as an immature teenager, she seemed to raise her own benchmark with each film through “Bangalore Days”, “Ennu Ninte Moideen”, “City of God”, “Take Off”, and “Uyare”. Parvathy is gifted with a distinct deep insightful approach when it comes to her choice of films. Her candid comments and unflinching stand on certain issues that cast a shadow on the industry had put her on the receiving end for bouquets and brickbats alike. But, on a positive note, Parvathy’s befitting response to her detractors was her onscreen performances.
Not many actors have bagged State and National Film Awards in such a short span of time in their career, like she has done.
Meanwhile, Surabhi Lakshmi, the National Film Award winner for “Minnaminungu,” is yet to get more significant roles to showcase her talent. State Award Winner Rajisha Vijayan (“Anuraga Karikkin Vellam”), Anumol (“Ivan Megharoopan”, “Akam”, and “Chayilyam”), and one-film-old Priyamvada Krishnan (“Thottappan”) are waiting in the wings for challenging characters.
“Aruvi”: The game changer
Even after two years of its release, “Aruvi”, written and directed by newbie Arun Prabu Purushothaman, still holds a towering status in Tamil Cinema industry. Aruvi, played by Aditi Balan, is a one-off powerful woman character being created in Tamil in a decade’s time. Aditi has played stupendously well the role of a girl, who battles alone against the social norms and customs. The character literally changed the attitude of audience towards female leads in films.
Anjali (“Angadi Theru”, and “Kattradhu Tamizh”) and Priya Mani (“Paruthiveeran”) are also promising actors. But in an industry, where potboilers are the real elixir, they have to wait for extended periods before a film that will tap their potential comes their way. This long list of actresses who have made a mark, continue their successful run without fan clubs adding zing to their achievements.
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My Writing Stable -KR Rejeesh 