Indian actress Sonam Kapoor, who swivelled heads on the opening night of the Dubai International Film Festival and the IWC Filmmaker Award gala, is a proud feminist. She believes in demanding equal opportunities and pay for men and women, and her beliefs have cost her many projects in Bollywood, which is notoriously male-dominated. Many have labelled her as ‘that difficult actress’, but she shrugs off those labels with ease. She’s taking one for the women’s team.
“I have been doing that from the very first day in the industry. If somebody doesn’t give me that respect, I don’t just work with that person. Women need to take a stand…and if women are undercutting you and putting you down, then that’s not going to help,” said Kapoor, in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the IWC Filmmaker Award night. Her mother’s words ‘only when you value yourself, they will value you’ is her talisman.
“If I decide what my price is, then that’s what I deserve. Perhaps, then an agency representing another actress may come and say that they can get an actor for that role for half the rate. And, that’s not going to help us women. I have lost a lot of films because of it, but I am fine.”
Fine is an understatement to define Kapoor’s current state of being. The actress, who got a special mention at last year’s Indian National Award for her role in Neerja, is on a roll. The IWC Schaffhausen brand ambassador exudes a warm and accessible vibe — that’s rare among Bollywood stars. She hugs you, instead of the customary, cold handshake and is animated when talking about her work.
She’s currently working on projects including an all-women comedy, Veere Di Wedding, with Kareena Kapoor Khan, and will re-unite with her Saawariya hero, Ranbir Kapoor, in a biopic about Sanjay Dutt. She also stars in Akshay Kumar’s Padman, a social commentary on women’s menstrual hygiene and the accessibility of sanitary pads. She was in the spotlight recently over reports that there was in-fighting among the actresses in Veere Di Wedding — she slammed those reports.
“With Veere Di Wedding, I want to show people that women can work together and make a fun film…but what was so strange [about the reports of fighting and rivalry] is that it was a woman who wrote the story and it was carried on a website owned by a woman. Why would you write something so completely untrue? Just because it makes good copy. It is just disheartening,” said Kapoor.
But the daughter of Anil Kapoor isn’t going to let her haters get to her. Kapoor, who’s also a regular at the Cannes Film Festival, believes that there are bigger battles to win. Recently, she had written a long post about how celebrities on the red carpet are a by product of an entourage working on their make-up and looks.
“We need to understand that how we look does not define who we are, especially in India and Middle East. There’s a lot of misogyny and pressure to look the way we look. It is nice to look good and wear nice clothes, but it should be done for yourself. It shouldn’t be to get validation from someone else,” said Kapoor. If someone tells her she looked amazing on the red carpet, she always reminds that person that there’s a team behind that look.
“If you see me without my make-up and fancy clothes, I look just like you. That’s what is important. I want women and girls not to get validation through their looks. What’s inside, your self-worth, your work and your intelligence should give us that validation.”
Ask her whether the Harvey Weinstein phenomenon, where women in Hollywood are speaking out about the sexual harassment and misconduct, will ever percolate into Bollywood, Kapoor is slightly more cautious. According to the actress, Bollywood is still 30 years behind its Western counterpart.
“I don’t think the women have the courage yet…We have a different culture. Women are very afraid of coming out there and saying that they were molested. I spoke about it a while back and lot of people asked me, ‘Why did you say it and do you want people to look at you like that?’ So many are scared to say they were raped or sexually violated,” said Kapoor.
In December 2016, Kapoor, in a television roundtable interview, had revealed that she was molested as a child and that it was traumatising.
“We have to fight all the stigmas before #MeToo is taken seriously. By that I mean that people should take women seriously. You have to believe that it’s her truth and that it doesn’t make her lesser of a person.”
The reality remains that casting couch and sexual misconduct exists in every industry, including Bollywood. A few years ago, several television channels had done sting operations revealing the murky and the seedier side of Hindi cinema, but Kapoor believes that misogyny is their reality.
“But I don’t think sexual harassment is as bad as before. It was really, really bad in the late 90s and early 2000s. Because of the exposes, it is better now,” she said.
Kapoor’s world is simple. She believes in being part of good films irrespective of the length of her role. Any project that makes her a better human being and an artiste is right up her alley.
Plus, she’s always game for supporting filmmaking talent. The IWC Fimmaker Award gala night in Dubai ticked all her boxes. An advocate of bolstering art, Kapoor will fly anywhere to support compelling narratives and voices.
“I support good stories. I support art and cinema that wants to say something, create an impact and change the mindset of people. And if you can do that while entertaining people then it is amazing. People are more likely to absorb things more when they are being entertained.”
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QUOTE AND UNQUOTE:
“It’s not about the size that you are. You could be very skinny, but be completely unhealthy. No matter if you are big or small, it is important to be healthy…Take care of yourselves and keep it real,” said Kapoor when asked about being body positive.
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DIFF red carpet turn
“Walking the red carpet on the opening night of DIFF was great… but contrary to what people think, I am very shy and I wear my clothes like armour. I am always nervous before I get onto the red carpet. Then, I pretend I am giving a shot in a movie and then I perform and leave,” said Kapoor on asked how she enjoyed her turn on the DIFF red carpet.
