Actress Sushama Sarkar Blames Directors' Mentality for Cinema Being Male-Dominated

Popular actress Sushama Sarkar said the Bangladeshi film industry has not yet been able to come out of the patriarchal mentality. She made this comment while talking to reporters at an event on Saturday (January 03). Sushama said men are given priority over women in choosing movie stories and characters, which is very unfortunate. She blamed the mentality of directors for this. According to her, very few directors have the courage to work on women-centric stories.

Insignificance of Women's Characters

Sushama alleged that in most movies, the character of the heroine is kept only to enhance the beauty of the hero. There is no strong personality or own entity of the woman there. She said, "There are many stories of women's struggles in our society, but they do not come up on the screen. Directors think the audience only wants to see fighting and the hero's heroism. This idea is wrong."

Narration of Own Experience

Highlighting her long career experience, Sushama said she has turned down work many times due to lack of good scripts. She wants to play characters that will inspire women in society. But opportunities to work outside the traditional trend are very few. She called upon young filmmakers to present women in a different light.

Need for Change

Sushama believes that when cinema around the world is talking about women's empowerment, we are still lagging behind. She said, "Cinema is not just entertainment, it is a tool for social change. If women are shown in respectful and strong characters, the outlook of society will also change." She emphasized on women filmmakers coming forward.

Current Situation of Dhallywood

In the discussion, she also spoke about the current crisis of Dhallywood. She said the audience is turning away from halls due to lack of good stories. Women's stories are getting lost in the crowd of male-dominated stories. However, she is optimistic that the thinking of the new generation is changing and in the future, we will see better quality women-centric movies.