Bhumi Pednekar : Can't do a Film where the Hero is Smacking a Girl’s butt; says No to Anti Feminist Movies

Bhumi Pednekar worked as an assistant casting director at Yash Raj Films for six years before making her film debut as an overweight bride in the romantic comedy titled Dum Laga Ke Haisha, which earned her the Award for Best Female Debut.

Bhumi has delivered some of the finest performances in films like Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, Sonchiriya, to name a few. Recently, she appeared alongside Taapsee Pannu in Saand Ki Aankh, a film based on the lives of sharpshooters Chandro and Prakashi Tomar. She was lauded for her performance and also delivered another subsequent success with Bala co-starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Yami Gautam. 

The actress has been lauded for her choice of scripts and the epigrammatic characters she plays on the screen. However, in a recent interview with Hindustan Times, Bhumi says a clear no to anti-feminist movies.

She says that she is not comfortable doing a film about women bashing or a film wherein ‘the hero is smacking a girl’s butt and the nation is celebrating it’.

I’m not comfortable doing a film where the hero is smacking a girl’s butt and the nation is celebrating it. I can’t be a part of a film that is anti-feminist or women bashing, or something that is out of my moral comfort.

- Bhumi Pednekar

Bhumi was recently trolled for playing a 60-year-old dadi in Saand Ki Aankh and a dark-skinned woman in Bala. She defends her choices by stating, that the look and age of the character she plays are not as important as the fact that the story is being told with honesty. 

She said, "Be it playing a fat person or an aged person. I don’t think it has anything to do with the way you look on screen, but how honestly you are telling the story."

Earlier, Bhumi also opened up the pay disparity she faced in the industry.  “I have been in a situation where I was paid 5% of what my male actor got, even though we had the same number of hits and our career graphs have been similar, “ she revealed.

However, she adds that times are changing and believes that there exists this wave of films that are led by female characters and it's empowering for her to be a part of those. 

On the work front, Bhumi will next share screen space with Ananya Panday and Kartik Aaryan in  Pati Patni Aur Woh, slated to hit theatres on December 6.