Sonam Kapoor talks about sexism in Bollywood films, says ‘each one of us needs to make better choices’

Sonam Kapoor, who has been highlighting the contributions of women in the film industry with her #WomenInFilm series on Instagram, talked about sexism in Bollywood. She said that there needs to be a change in the manner that song lyrics and scripts are written about women.

In a new interview, Sonam said that even now, it is believed that female actors need to act and dress in a certain way. She added that women need to take a stand for themselves and ‘make better choices’

“There still exists this idea of working with the ‘big hero’ to succeed. And female actors need to be a certain way, dress a certain way, and talk in a certain way to ‘fit in’. You still have your teams reminding you to ‘fit the mould’. I’m fortunate that my team isn’t like that, but it happens all the time!,” she told Cosmopolitan India.

Sonam said that the women of the film industry need to rally together and turn down films and projects that are sexist. “Look at the way song lyrics or scripts are written about women... that needs to change. The way women are portrayed and talked about in the industry is not okay, and as women, we should not agree to work in those films because we are just harming ourselves. There is no price too high, especially considering all that has happened over this year... Each one of us needs to make better choices, or we will be subjected to a witch-hunt and we will be burnt at the stake!,” she said.

Earlier, at the HT Youth Forum in Chandigarh, Sonam had talked about doing her bit to discourage pay disparity in Bollywood. “I refuse to work with film producers who pay female actors less than males. I was told, ‘You can afford to do so as you have a safety net. You come from a rich family.’ I have been fending for myself since I was 18. It is hard for me also to say no to money but as someone who feels it is not morally right to get less paid than male stars, I don’t work for such producers,” she said.

Sonam, who completed 13 years in Bollywood earlier this month, had two releases last year - Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga and The Zoya Factor. She is yet to confirm her next project.

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