Malayalam actress Bhavana, in an interview with Manorama News, said that heroines continue to play second fiddle to the hero. Stating that it is a male dominated industry, the actress adds that there is barely any freedom for heroines.
“The heroine gets only a second place in the film. In reality, the approach is that heroines are not necessary. If you were to look at the films I have done over the years, you would see many hits. But that has not benefited me much financially, no pay hike or anything,” she says.
Actresses in recent times have been waging a war against pay disparity, particularly in the cinema industry. Recently, Kalki Koechlin minced no words when she spoke about the gender discrimination and pay disparity in the film industry. Calling it a fact and not an opinion, Kalki believes that it’s about time people accepted its existence as a severely male-dominated industry.
Even producer/filmmaker Kiran Rao spoke up against pay disparity, saying that it’s shameful that women still have to fight for getting equal pay. She also said that women shouldn’t stop dreaming or working towards their goal.
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Unequal pay is a reality in several countries, including India. According to the ‘Men and Women in India 2016‘ report by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, there is a 25 percent difference in the wages of women and men. The National Sample Survey of 2011-12 also states that the average wage or salary received per day by regular wage or salaried employees between the age group of 15 and 59 years is Rs 201.56 (rural) and Rs 366.15 (urban) for females and is lower than that of males who get paid Rs 322.23 (rural) and Rs 469.87 (urban).
Bhavana, who has been acting since the age of 15, also tells Manorama News that she will continue acting even after her marriage. She is engaged to Kannada film producer Naveen, with their marriage slated to take place next month. She was last seen with Prithviraj Sukumaran in the recently-released film Adam Joan.