Love Indian movies but lets rewrite sexist Bollywood songs

Movie-lovers are invited to change the lyrics to any Bollywood film song they find sexist, in a bid to highlight misogyny in the Indian fim industry.

Indian poet and scriptwriter Javed Akhtar with his wife, Indian actress Shabana Azmi arriving at the 15th annual International Indian Film Awards at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on April 2Show more

MUMBAI // A women’s rights organisation is asking movie-loving Indians to rewrite sexist Bollywood songs, in the latest attempt to draw attention to gender stereotyping and misogyny portrayed by the country’s influential film industry.

The Akshara Centre’s Gaana (song) Rewrite competition, launched in December, invites people to change the lyrics to any Bollywood film song they find sexist.

The group said it may then engage with the film industry to push for change.

“In our gender awareness work, one of the issues that’s been raised repeatedly by young women is being harassed by men singing inappropriate Bollywood songs,” said Snehal Velkar, a coordinator at Akshara Centre in Mumbai, the Bollywood hub.

“Bollywood songs are great to sing and dance to, but when you pay attention, you realise that many of them objectify and demean women. This leads to normalising sexual harassment and violence against women,” she said.

The Hindi film industry, commonly known as Bollywood, is one of the world’s most prolific, making hundreds of movies every year. They are generally syrupy romances, family dramas or action movies peppered with elaborate song-and-dance routines.

Many movies also have so-called item numbers or songs, which often have little to do with the subject of the film, and typically feature scantily clad women.

In recent years, as violent crimes against women have made the headlines, women activists and some movie stars have taken Bollywood to task for its sexist themes and for glorifying violence against women.

Nearly four out of five women in India have faced harassment or assault, ranging from staring, insults, wolf whistles or being followed, to being groped or raped, according to a recent survey by the charity ActionAid UK.

Well-known Hindi film songwriters including Javed Akhtar and Prasoon Joshi have criticised their peers for writing vulgar and irresponsible lyrics, while also blaming moviegoers who encourage such music.

Earlier this year, activists urged the Tamil Nadu film industry to stop portraying stalking as cool, and instead see it as a crime that has resulted in violent deaths in the south Indian state.

The Indian government has brought in tougher penalties for gender crimes, including criminalising stalking and voyeurism.

Yet popular culture, including Bollywood, must be accountable for the enormous influence it wields and help ensure a more responsible portrayal of women, said Ms Velkar, who is spreading word of the competition using hashtag #BollywoodCanChange.

“We want to send a message to the industry that we can have popular music without it being sexist or humiliating to women,” she said.

* Thomson Reuters Foundation