Almost a year ago, Karan Johar’s movie “Rocky aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani” hit theatres, marking his comeback as a director after five years. With Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh in the lead roles, it was one of the most awaited releases of 2023. The film apparently broke away from Dharma Productions’ usual style, tackling critical issues like feminism, gender stereotypes, and women’s empowerment. Some even dubbed it as the feminist retelling of “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham” for 2023.
The problem is that the film falls short miserably by adopting ‘tokenism’ at every stage of its narrative. Tokenism is the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to do a particular thing in order to give a sense of equality. The movie tries to be ‘Woke’ in the guise of tackling patriarchy, misogyny, gender equality, and even cancel culture. But it perpetuates all the biases that commonly mainstream cinema has. The dialogues feel uni-dimensional, with the main characters delivering monologues against a backdrop of loud music and unrealistic extravagance.
Problematic feminist stereotypes: Bengali vs. Punjabi women
The movie pretends to have an interesting take on gender roles and patriarchy with Rani and Rocky’s characters but does not really show genuine female empowerment. The trope of internalised misogyny among Punjabi women and the fierce feminism in Bengali women have also been exaggerated to the fullest extent. The makers of the movie did not bother to look at the data.
Here is an example:
An analysis of the IAS dataset for the years 2011 to 2020 confirms state-wise disparity in the proportion of women recruits in IAS. Amongst the largest 20 states (based on population), Punjab is the best-performing state, with 45% of women officers designating it as their domicile. Therefore, we can safely state that Punjabi women are beyond how they are shown in Bollywood – beyond dancing, singing and performing elaborate rituals during Karva Chauth.
Coming back to Bengali Women. No, not all of them are vocal, work in media and are unabashed about their sexualities. Women in Bengal also become part of headlines because of dowry death, trafficking, gang rape and every other atrocity women across India regularly get subjected to.
Coming back to the story, in one scene, Rani’s mother (celebrated Bengali actress Churni Ganguly) takes Rocky, aka Ranveer Singh, lingerie shopping and asks him to try on a bra in front of everyone.
The choice of Churni Ganguly is interesting. She fits the bill. She is an educated actor and filmmaker with a formidable body of work that includes National Awards. While the speech about destigmatising bras is essential, the way it happens feels uncomfortable. It is harassment. Imagine if the situation were reversed, and a woman was asked to try on men’s boxers in public.
Rocky aur Rani Ki Prem Katha: The ChangeInContent view
Unfortunately, men experience sexual harassment, too. According to PEW research statistics from 2014, 25% of women and 13% of men between the ages of 18 and 24 have experienced online sexual harassment. While the statistics for men are lower, one cannot ignore them. In India, there are numerous legislations and statutes addressing sexual harassment against women. However, it is equally essential to recognise and address sexual harassment against men. Article 14 of the Indian Constitution enshrines the “right to equality,” ensuring equality before the law and equal protection under the law. Focusing solely on women’s issues without considering those of men would violate this right.
Feminism is not equal to violence.
Then, there’s a scene where Rani (Alia Bhatt) pushes Rocky’s father in public. If a man did the same, it would be seen as abuse or violence against women. These scenes suggest that when women are pushed to the extreme, morally questionable actions might be justified. In the end, she is forgiven, gets Rocky, and lives happily ever after. This type of storyline is highly damaging as it encourages problematic behaviour.
Sexual advances: Can they be funny?
Another scene that caught attention was when Rocky’s Mother-in-Law-to-be asks him to take out all his clothes, and he mistakenly thinks she’s suggesting sex when she’s actually referring to laundry. Why do innocent statements by women often get misunderstood as sexual invitations? What’s particularly troubling in this scene is how the script finds humour in the idea of a prospective son-in-law misinterpreting his Mother-in-Law’s words as a sexual advance.
Would it still be considered a joke if this scenario involved a father-in-law and a daughter-in-law instead? Would Karan Johar be comfortable recreating the scene with a Non-Bengali mother-in-law? We do not think so. Somehow, ‘Bengali’ women are not considered to be ‘Sanskari’ due to the stereotypical representation of dusky, beautiful, chain-smoking, working women. Regardless, it’s inappropriate to write such uncomfortable themes in movies at the expense of making a woman feel objectified as a sexual figure, wherein she is representative of mothers who are successful with a mind of their own.
‘Rocky aur Rani ki prem kahani’: Feminism and Bollywood’s costume choices
Then there’s the issue of feminism and the freedom to wear overly sexualised clothing. Historically, women have been told what to wear and what not to wear. Today, women celebrate the freedom to wear whatever they want. But is revealing clothing really the direction women should be heading in, showing their freedom of choice? Just because we can?
The costumes worn by Rani highlight Bollywood’s tendency to prioritise fashion choices that are far from realistic. Alia’s blouses, often low-cut bralette styles paired with revealingly draped sarees, appear more tailored to the male gaze. Bengali women and sarees go hand in hand, and we are aware that not all of them wear cotton sarees. Here, the fabric of choice is not really an issue. Where women are subjected to sexual harassment at work, responsible storytelling should showcase appropriate clothing at work.
The problem is not with the sleeveless blouse. The problem is with the sexualisation of attire in the guise of a progressive Bengali look. The terribly mismatched, culturally inconsistent styling is meant to be complete with a big round bindi, nose ring, and kajal to give it the final push- “the stereotypical Bold, sultry, Bengali woman”, who discusses sex with their parent, where patriarchy does not exist (represented by Rani’s father performing Kathak- considered to be a feminine art form), a grandmother open about extra-marital relationships and everyone drinking alcohol together. We find it almost humiliating that Bengali women are commoditised to this extent.
The final thoughts on Rocky aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani
The movie, with its high-profile cast, music, and glamorous sarees by Manish Malhotra, seems determined to promote the “Modern Bengali Woman” stereotype that can bring gender equality to non-Bengali households. However, it is another version of a regular Karan Johar-ish school of filmmaking. The way we react to Karan’s portrayal of the LGBTQIA+ community in ‘SOTY’ and ‘Dostana’ is somewhat similar to how we feel after watching ‘Rocky or Rani’.
Mr Johar, this one is for you. Women had it hard, and we continue to face challenges that most people probably do not see. We are fighting hard to stay alive, get jobs, get respectable pay and even more basic rights in the world. When we go out, we worry about ourselves and our underage daughters, our sisters and our peers for our physical safety.
We even worry about our lives within the confines of our homes. Some of us do not even come out of our mother’s wombs. It is complex; it is not only about binary women- it is about anyone who is marginalised. Being the most celebrated filmmaker in B-town, we expect you to understand how marginalised people experience life. Therefore, could we expect some understanding and less misogynistic scripts? We sign off saying we are hopeful that there will be real change in content.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are based on the writer’s insights, supported by data and resources available both online and offline, as applicable. Changeincontent.com is committed to promoting inclusivity across all forms of content, which we define broadly to include media, policies, law, and history—encompassing all elements that influence the lives of women and gender-queer individuals. Our goal is to promote understanding and advocate for comprehensive inclusivity.
