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Much has been said about the recent Shahid Kapoor-starrer Kabir Singh . The Bollywood remake of the cult hit Telugu, Arjun Reddy brought in almost 250 crores of box office rent, sparking debates about what healthy representations of toxic masculinity and the dividing line look like between two scenes and endorse it is. Some have wondered why the Bollywood remake had sparked so much debate, while it is, after all, pretty much identical to the Telugu version of two years ago. Others have offered their answers: it is perhaps because Kabir Singh brought the story to a new (and larger) audience, or because the cinema Telugu is traditionally known for its greater tolerance to misogyny on the screen. [19659002] But the controversy over the film is minimal compared to a recent interview with director Sandeep Reddy Vanga. It is understandable that the netizens are very unhappy with his comment: "If you can not slap, if you can not touch a woman where you want, if you can not kiss, if you can not use words n & # "There is no emotion." Many have used Twitter to share their own stories of domestic violence, stalking and harbadment, highlighting one thing they probably would not want to do: that nothing about these non-consensual experiences is a love
Shame on the director and all the fans of movies such as #KabirSingh and #ArjunReddy . is not love, keep repeating it until it is blown into your heads.
– Makeup Rod (@FuschiaScribe) July 6, 2019
In reality, Indian cinema has always been a treasure for toxic masculinity. This is not to say that there are no big films told from other angles, but it is undeniable that there are still too many cinematographic works that glorify criminal harbadment, shed light on rape (and victims of rape) and portray violence in an extremely nonchalant way. And if you, like me, grew up in the 90s Tamil cinema regime, you might even think that any romantic relationship is based on at least one solid slap. Even a film as recent as Saamy 2 shows a man who slaps a woman to "put her in her place" and give her the kind of woman they would like to be with. By watching these movies, it would be very easy to think that slapping is actually a sign of love, or at least a necessary precondition.
Last year, some friends and I started watching some of our favorite Tamil movies among our favorite movies. childhood – most of them from the early years. Meeting in front of a television, we shared with enthusiasm our suggestions: Gilli Padayappa Saami Friends … invariably, a few minutes after the beginning of the film, we said to ourselves: "I do not remember being so badist / misogynist / racist / toxic / problematic. "
There is the condescending speech that Rajnikanth gave to Ramya Krishnan about what "True Woman" should be like ( Padayappa ); Vijay's invasive flirting style in Friends ; and a particular scene from 2002 Alli Arjuna which, 17 years ago, seemed incredibly problematic to me: a scene where the main character forcibly kisses a girl in public. The imaging of him covering the stage by holding a diary while he is putting his lips on his lips is troubling, and the fact that he feels remorse only because the girl is suicide and that he is in love with her friend.
By the time we get to the end of these movies (if we even get there), my friends and I shake their heads and jokingly say, "We were asleep then," referring to our relative lack of "vigilance" ". We still did not think deeply about equality and consent, we were not yet exposed to the high volume of misogyny that would hit us hard when we entered our adolescence and we still did not spend our free time thinking about the relationship between art and real life (as we usually do now.)
Yet this is what happens in the past, if we see ourselves as progressive in any way either, we will always look back in the movies / books / songs / memes and say, "I do not agree with that now, even though I was at the time." for find new ways to talk about things, to update our opinions based on the broad discussions we've had (hopefully) since, and in many ways, that's what's great about culture if you believe in the aphorism according to the equel "we get the art we deserve", movies are a great way to reflect our lives and our communities. And therefore they are also an excellent opportunity to look in this mirror and do something that we do not see as we see it.
Sandeep Reddy Vanga held this mirror for us. We are in a world where, while many victims of abuse speak of the film's triggering effects, the country continues to pay hundreds of crores to see it. And we try to have a conversation about it. That's why it's encouraging to see actress Samantha Akkineni denouncing Vanga's views as her trolls ruthlessly reminded her that she was slapped by Ram Charan in Rangasthalam (2018). I will add to this list: Samantha's 2015 film Thanga Magan featured a flashback in which Dhanush followed Amy Jackson several times to the temple, because he was "in love" with her . Why, Samantha's cinematic debut, in Gautham Vasudev Menon's successful 2010 Telugu film Ye Maya Chesave was also criticized for what some perceive as stalker behavior on the part of the male lead .
on the potential effect of these films is important, so that artists, including actors like Samantha, can take a look at their work and hopefully evolve. But these roles do not deprive her of her right to criticize Vanga for her extremely extreme beliefs (none of which has ever been recorded). The same goes for Chinmayi, who was reminded of the moment when her husband slapped someone on the screen when she objected to Vanga's views.
Vanga's mirror also shows us that we use imperfect arguments to defend our badist views. In his interview, the filmmaker expresses his disappointment with the people who describe his film as an expression of toxic masculinity. And his social media supporters agree, "Just because you see it does not mean you have to do it." Why, says Vanga, I grew up watching gangster movies, but that does not mean I'm a gangster.
But that's where the problem lies: we live in a society that has more or less clearly stated that murder, shooting at someone at close range, and the management of 39, a drug cartel are punishable offenses. Although not all sanctions can be applied, we are aware that the murder of someone after watching, for example, The Godfather or drug trafficking after Narcos will probably put us in difficulty. Because the unacceptability in such cases is rather clear and crisp, it is prudent to justify its representation on the screen.
But is this same justification valid when it is a scene of a girl being followed at home after college? To be kissed against her will? Be forced to drop out of clbades and go to an appointment with you? It is not punishable and people are often made fun of "boys will be boys".
That is why these fictionalized representations of toxic masculinity are a problem: because the society is still at a stage where many parties believe that the behavior is acceptable.
As for those who might say, "It's only a film and not a prescription for young men," I have this to say: a film about chauvinism does not need to be chauvinistic . As a public, we want more movies about misogynistic behavior, as they will help deepen the discussion about the influence of art on life. But scrolling a movie like it's not it will not advance the dialogue at all.
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