In a candid conversation on Hauterrfly’s The Male Feminist, Bollywood actress Mallika Sherawat revealed shocking details about the South Indian film industry’s obsession with showcasing actresses’ stomachs and navels. The actress shared her experience working in a South Indian film where she faced a bizarre and uncomfortable request from the director.
Mallika Sherawat On South Film Industry’s Obsession With Navel
During a conversation with The Male Feminist host Siddharth Alambaya, Mallika recalled the incident: “I was shooting for a song in a South Indian movie when the director approached me. He said, ‘Madam, we want to show how hot you are.’ I agreed, thinking it was just a typical dance sequence. But then he added, ‘In this scene, the hero will cook rotis on your stomach.’” The actress expressed her disbelief and disgust at the director’s suggestion. “Can you imagine? This was their idea of how to portray a woman as hot by having a hero cook rotis on her waist. Of course, I declined. It doesn’t work for me,” she asserted, emphasizing how such requests reflect a problematic mindset prevalent in parts of the industry.
Mallika further commented on the broader issue of how women’s sexuality has been exploited for decades in films and advertising. “A woman’s sexuality has been used to sell everything soaps, cars, washing machines, even toothpaste. In 2004, when I did Murder, we used erotica for the box office. What is the box office? It’s stimulation, right?” she explained, referring to the controversy that surrounded her film at the time. The actor recalled the backlash she faced for her bold choices. “People were outraged; they burned my dolls. On one side, you use a woman’s sexuality to sell something, and on the other, you abuse me for the same thing.”
Mallika’s revelations shed light on the objectification women face in the entertainment industry, particularly in regional cinema. On the latest episode of The Male Feminist, she also opened up on topics of being a s*x symbol, working with Mahesh Bhatt and more.
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