While women in Bollywood have gained more agency in recent times, Dia Mirza recently shared how she witnessed blatant disregard for a woman’s space early in her career. The actor recalled being shut down when she asked questions on the sets of Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge, where she starred alongside Salman Khan. She also pointed out the glaring inconsistencies in her character that no one seemed to pay attention to.
Speaking to Zoom about the working environment for women in the Hindi film industry back then, Dia said, “Mostly, things were shot based on the date availability of your male co-star and the location availability. That happens even now, but it is easier to navigate if you know the story. At that time, we didn’t know anything.”
Citing Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge as an example, Dia explained how, despite working with a top team in the Hindi film industry, little to no attention was given to the female character, and even the script was not readily available to them. “During the shooting of Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge, the director was Pankaj Parashar. I was like, ‘Wow, Pankaj has done ChaalBaaz. He is amazing.’ Then there is also Salman Khan as the hero, and the film is backed by an established producer. They spent lavishly to make everything accessible for the story, but the script wasn’t available.”
She added, “There weren’t any workshops, no readings. Scenes were written in Bhojpuri. My character was from Rajasthan, but I was speaking Bhojpuri. My lines were given to me minutes before I went to shoot. My clothes were getting stitched on the fly and just arriving.”
When Dia questioned the inconsistencies in her character, she was dismissed. “They told me my character wears a chaniya choli, and I was like, ‘Why?’ They told me, ‘You ask a lot of questions. Don’t do that. Just do whatever is being told to you,’” she said. She further added, “What completely stifled me was the total disregard for a woman’s space. For her questions and allow her the benefit of knowing better for her to do better.”
Dia Mirza was recently seen in Nadaaniyan. The film marks Ibrahim Ali Khan’s debut and also stars Khushi Kapoor in a lead role.