Opinion: Deriding The Feminine Gaze?

Like Jism, Jism 2 is unapologetic and deals with a subject that all of India is shy to discuss but that which all of Indian media devours and exploits to gain the TRPs, the readership and the viewership at every opportunity it gets, be it the molestation of a young girl outside a nightclub in Guwahati or an MMS involving two young students. The hypocrisy of our society is so deeply rooted that the double standards come glaring to the fore when most of the elitist media trashes a film like Jism 2 when at the box office, it tears past all inhibitions and doubts. I remember a few months ago, Vivek Agnihotri’s Hate Story was released and became a success. The same critic who has gone on a limb taking off on Jism 2 was mostly quiet then. Why? Well, because Hate Story was made by a man.

These hypocrites today have the audacity to criticize a successful Jism 2 because  Pooja Bhatt, the maker of the film is the woman on  top here, in a  domain primarily considered to be that of a man’s, yes, in India, sex is to be enjoyed, created, recreated and expressed by a man in a man’s world only, therefore these men and women tapping away at their keys aimlessly, don’t know what else to do but to spill venom.Women making films, the big ticket ones,  women like Farah Khan and Zoya Akhtar, too have pushed the envelope and broken the norms, but have yet to crossover from fun flicks or romantic flicks to hard hitting, straight in the face  cinema dealing with sex, violence, death and its ramifications. Or else they say, women must stay with art and realism, non commercial, as it is a space in the industry which  has been allotted to them, reluctantly.

I know for a fact how hard it is for a woman to express herself honestly in the world of  television and cinema in India. I struggle to survive it every day. I release my need to speak,  on my blog and through the smallest opportunities I get, whether it is through the making of a short film, writing a play or via the making of a documentary film. So when Pooja Bhatt, charges past all male detractors with a defiance and makes the films she chooses to produce, direct or write, I salute her. She has the guts, the finesse, the panache and the ability to unleash her craft upon an audience that accepts her though she speaks the language they dare not admit that they understand.

For in India for many years still to come…
… they will not admit that like men, women too love sex.
… they will not admit that fantasy is not unique to men.
… That just like men, women too have fantasies. And that the film sublimated many of them.
… … they will not admit that from the day Pooja Bhatt announced that she was casting a porn star as the main lead of her film, they have been waiting for it to be completed and released, so that they can rush to see it the first show they can get tickets for.
… they will not admit that they find the pace of the film slow only because in all those moments  Sunny Leone was not  getting intimate with the two leading men..and that they virtually prayed that the dialogue would end soon so that nudity could take over again…
… they will not admit that they can’t wait to see the porn star in her next film.

Fact is, that the box-office  speaks the truth. Jism 2 is a hit and Pooja Bhatt is unapologetic about it. She speaks her mind through her aesthetically created visuals and honesty and  commercial success is hers today despite the critics.

I, as a woman filmmaker myself, am jealous of her!