In today’s Bollywood, Zoya Akhtar has been the force behind some really good content-driven projects. Be it in films like Gully Boy, Luck By Chance or shows like Made In Heaven , she has picked up burning topics that need people’s attention. Akhtar has worked on making her films progressive and relatable. Talking about the same, the filmmaker recently revealed how she feels that this representation was lacking in the past. 

“Representation is when your identity or personality is validated in any kind of popular culture. It is not just women; other communities, disabilities and even men are also represented badly many times,” she told The Hindu.

She further added, “In the ’80s and ’90s, you never saw tenderness, you never saw consent. But we had molestation scenes. That affects the psyche of a nation.” And we agree. There are still so many scenes from the ’90s films that do the rounds on social media. Today we might find it unpleasant but to think that such representation existed in the past makes you cringe. 

If you remember the scene from Aamir Khan’s film Tum Mere Ho. He says “Kategi Kya?” in one of the scenes. Thanks to Pretentious Reviews by Kanan Gill and Biswa Kalyan Rath, many people got to see this scene and question the kind of content that has been showed in the past. 

Akhtar also said, “You saw women that had no right to express how they felt, and that definitely makes a difference. So how you’re representing is key, as people need to know they’re not alone.”

Zoya Akhtar is now busy with her next directorial, The Archies. She is joining hands with her long-time collaborator Reema Kagti to produce the film under their banner Tiger Baby. Suhana Khan, Khushi Kapoor and Agastya Nanda will mark their Bollywood debut with the film. The other four actors are Mihir Ahuja, Dot, Yuvraj Menda and Vedang Raina. 

(Featured Image Credits: Instagram @zoyaakhtar)