Filmmaker Karan Johar feels it is big time people understand the importance of being sensitive towards gender representation in films. In a recent interview, Karan pointed out that female-led films are now consistently opening to bigger numbers than their male-led counterparts, and it is a trend that is hard to ignore. Also read: Karan Johar reveals why he named his children Yash and Roohi as he wishes them on 8th birthday: An emotion must continue
Karan expressed his views in a recent interaction on Lilly Singh’s podcast. During the podcast, Karan was asked about the importance of being sensitive to gender politics.
To this, Karan shared, “If we can get our politics right… I am not saying always entertain. Cinema is meant for large scale, entertainment, visual spectacle, joy, everything that you are meant to feel but you can do it all without the wrong politics. You can entertain a large audience across the nation by just not propagating, positioning and platforming incorrect gender politics or incorrect social norms, incorrect ways of being. Just basics have to be followed. Unfortunately, there is no censorship in the world that can help you, it has to be self-censorship. A film that doesn’t have right communication may still be a blockbuster but is that eventually a good thing, I am not sure.”
The filmmaker confessed that he feels happy when films such as Stree 2 and Alia Bhatt’s Gangubai Kathiawadi work well at the box office.
He said, “When Alia did Gangubai Kathiawadi, that, to me, was a big victory in cinema. That character was completely driven by her performance and it opened to larger numbers than many leading men who are movie stars. This is big sign that a woman can lead a film. Men talk about pay parity and that they should be paid more because they bring more money, but we are talking about the time when women’s movies are opening much higher than some big male movie stars who are opening to dismal box office numbers.”
What’s next for Karan
At the moment, Karan is busy with his next project Nadaaniyan which will mark debut of Saif Ali Khan’s son Ibrahim Ali Khan in showbiz. Ibrahim will star opposite Khushi Kapoor in the film, which will be released directly on Netflix. The film will also mark the debut of director Shauna Gautam, who was an assistant director to Karan Johar on Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani.
Karan’s latest production, Jigra, which he co-produced with Alia Bhatt and which starred Alia in the lead role, failed at the box office.