A recent clipping of South Indian actor Parvathy Thiruvothu pointing out the toxic masculinity and representational sexism in Vijay Deverakonda’s Arjun Reddy has gone viral.
Critic Anupama Chopra in collaboration with the Filmy Companion hosted a round table with actors from all across India. The topic of their discussion was the moral responsibility of actors and their ethics to turn down a role that sets a bad example for the public.
I feel like the world is fucked. I feel like by making a better film, can I save it? I just see it going downhill. Neither am I like ‘social responsibility’. I think it’s too much of a responsibility to take. Just a film doesn’t decide your behaviour.
Sticking to what he believed in, he made another statement which was backed up by Manoj Bajpai. Deverakonda said:
Maybe there is a couple who is so in love, it is completely possible if you think of it broadly, that a couple is completely in love, and they give each other little hits and stuff and they completely understand, and they are still in love.
Deepika Padukone who always chooses her words wisely and backed Parvathy up with every bone of feminism she had in her body. From eye-rolling to Deverakonda’s very problematic statement to speaking up about the toxic glorification, she didn’t leave a stone unturned.
Twitter cheered on for Parvathy for pointing out misogyny and patriarchy in films.
Watch the full episode here.