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Zoya Akhtar talks about importance of consensual intimacy on-screen; says 'Grew up at a time where women were...'
Zoya Akhtar recently expressed her opinion on how important it is to showcase consensual intimacy on the screens. Zoya has directed movies like Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, The Archies, and more.
Zoya Akhtar made her directorial debut with Luck By Chance in 2009, headlined by her brother, actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar. After helming the 2009 film including other movies like Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Gully Boy, and The Archies, Zoya carved a niche for herself in the Hindi film industry. The ZNMD director recently opened up about the importance of consensual intimacy on-screen by saying that she grew up when women characters were "bullied" and "beaten" up in films.
In the latest session of Expresso of Indian Express, Zoya Akhtar shed light on censorship in cinema while arguing that physical intimacy shouldn't be censored. Zoya also discussed how important it is to showcase consensual intimacy in films and web series.
"I grew up at a time where women were bullied, beaten up, harassed and sexually assaulted on screen. All these were allowed, but you couldn’t see a kiss," Zoya said. The filmmaker added that the audience should be able to watch love, tenderness, and physical intimacy between two adults.
Zoya's father, veteran screenwriter-lyricist Javed Akhtar presented his perspective to the discussion. Javed highlighted the psyche behind representing a love scene while saying that showing a love scene to "titillate" and evoke "genuine romance and empathy" is quite different.
Recalling his experience, the Deewar screenwriter shared that he doesn't use "four-letter cuss words" during anger. However, when he watched it being delivered on-screen in Bandit Queen, he didn't mind as it was not intended to "shock or titillate" the audience.
In Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Katrina Kaif's character Laila kisses Arjun (played by Hrithik Roshan) during his road trip with friends, Kabir Dewan (Abhay Deol) and Imraan Qureshi (Farhan Akhtar). Zoya's other notable works include Dil Dhadakne Do, Lust Stories, Ghost Stories, Talaash: The Answer Lies Within, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, and more.
Zoya appeared in Namrata Rao's docu-series, Angry Young Men. The series was based on the lives of Salim-Javed, the iconic screenwriter duo who ruled the 1970s in Hindi cinema. The series premiered on Amazon Prime Video on August 20, 2024. It also featured Salman Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, and Jaya Bachchan.
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