Betaal actress Aahana Kumra: Every content creator should take responsibility for how they portray women

MUMBAI: Actor Aahana Kumra said that content creators in the entertainment industry need to take responsibility for the way they portray women on screen. 

The 35-year-old actress, who made her foray in the Hindi film industry with Lipstick Under My Burkha, said that she believes in the thought of 'you are what you watch', and hence, it is important for her to make sure that women have well-defined roles in the projects she joins. 

'As content creators it is our responsibility to develop rounded female characters. Everybody in the industry should take that kind of responsibility because films are a huge part of how we lead our lives and also inspire us to be a certain way or do a certain thing,' Aahana said.

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A post shared by Aahana S Kumra (@aahanakumra) on May 22, 2020 at 10:39pm PDT

The actress said even in her latest Netflix Original series Betaal, the women are the guiding force and have a significant role to play in taking the story forward. 

Betaal is written and directed by Patrick Graham, who previously helmed the horror series Ghoul for Netflix. Suhani Kanwar has co-written the show produced by Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment. 

'What Patrick and Suhani have done is that they have beautifully weaved women characters. All the women are shown in great light. The women here are powerful and there’s equal representation,' Aahana said. 

'My character, DC "Ahu" Ahluwalia, is an army officer and pretty bada**. She's not the brightest one but is a very righteous person. And that’s how it should be. It is important to have this kind of balanced approach while writing female parts,' she said. 

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"When the goin gets tough, it's only the tough who get going". Proud to play Deputy Commandant Ahluwalia from the #BaazSquad in #Betaal #Sirohi ....hum #BaazSquad hain!! #Ahlu Don't miss out! Premieres on 24th May, only on #Netflix @netflix_in @redchilliesent @iamsrk @blumhouse @skglobalent @gaurikhan @_gauravverma @mysore.v @jplgraham @nikmahajan @itsviineetkumar @jitendrajoshi27 @suchipillai @sidmenon1 @jatin_goswami1 @manjiripupala @synaanandofficial @tanaysatam @prasadchaurasiya @paragnm @vikramdahiya707 @shruti_kapoor_21 @dharamsoni @krishnabisht17 @akhilesh_unnithan @suhanikanwar @adhirbhat @rebeccabmakeup @karolina.kaya @suchijaggi . . . . #netflixandchill #series #horror #thriller #action #webseries #newwork #Gratitude #AahanaKumra

A post shared by Aahana S Kumra (@aahanakumra) on May 21, 2020 at 4:42am PDT

The actor said that she believes the show, co-directed by Nikhil Mahajan, is a first India-set zombie horror series that is well-cut for global audiences. 

“We had seen Go Goa Gone a few years back but it was a zombie horror-comedy movie. Betaal is very different. It derives its backdrop from India’s history, which is the East India Company. Patrick and Suhani have beautifully connected the dots of those historical events and then put them together and make a show that is visually appealing. The show is made keeping in mind the global audience,” Aahana said. 

Betaal, which premiered on Sunday, also features Viineet Kumar, Jitendra Joshi, Suchitra Pillai, Jatin Goswami, and Siddharth Menon in it. 

SOURCE – THE ENVOY WEB

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