The poster of Mission Mangal that featured Akshay Kumar more prominently than the other leading ladies of the film had garnered a lot of debate, flak and backlash on social media. People questioned Akshay’s prominence in the poster when the film is supposed to be lead by five leading ladies namely-Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, Sonakshi Sinha, Nithya Menen and Kirti Kulhari. During the trailer launch of the film, Akshay was even asked about the poster but the actor said that they were all very happy with it and the fact remains that the film is led by the women cast members.
However, Taapsee told a leading daily that the poster was designed in a way because Akshay will draw the audiences to the theatres. She also said that the onus lies on the audience to change things by watching and supporting more women-led films. She said, “It is great that people notice that, also then those same people can do something about the collections of a female-driven film. Because Akshay Kumar will get the audience in the theatre, that is the hard fact. All of us are doing great work in our own capacities. But, he will still manage to get a bigger number, at the end of the day. We cannot run away from this reality."
She further added, “Whatever issue happened with the poster, hope people realise it and do something about it rather than questioning the makers. The audience can change things by walking into theatres where women are at the forefront. Hopefully, in the future it shouldn't be about the gender, but whose films get the numbers. Eventually it is a business and about how much money your films can make.”
Mission Mangal also stars Sharman Joshi and is directed by Jagan Shakti. The film explores India’s first interplanetary mission, Mars Orbiter Mission and celebrates Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientists’ hard work in making this dream a reality. The film is slated to release on August 15.
(Source: Hindustan Times)