Last year, Aamir Khan made a very pertinent comment about women vis a vis the payment disparity. “We don't see women as heroes. We start planting these thoughts in our heads since childhood. There has to be a paradigm shift in that. I am someone who strongly believes in equality whether you are man or a woman. But ultimately in the economics of cinema anyone who pulls people in will be paid higher. There is no question about it.”

Money Talks
This was proved when Deepika Padukone took home the fattest paycheck compared to her co-actors Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor in Padmavat. She ducked reports about her alleged Rs.13 crore salary, quipping, “Talking about my remuneration isn't exciting.” But she did make a far stronger point, adding, “But I am proud and confident about the money I get. You are comfortable with what you are paid. But what makes me happy is that they (producers) have invested so much money in a film which has a poster featuring me on it. That makes me proud.”

In recent years there have been increasing numbers of films whose posters have featured the leading women, as the central characters, the ‘heroes’, so to speak.

Vidya Balan set the balling rolling when she debuted in Parineeta and gave us more reason to cheer with characters like the foul-mouthed, canny Krishna in Ishqiya. The Dirty Picture was her baby entirely, as she straddled the screen in all her outrageous glory. More recently, she scored big time again as Sulu.

Playing the beautiful, enthusiastic and happy-go-lucky Mumbai housewife whose routine life changes when she unexpectedly lands herself the exciting job of a night RJ (radio jockey) on a leading radio station, she was the central force of Tumhari Sulu from word go. The film’s resounding success at the box office will, in turn, create opportunities for more such engaging, women-centric fare – nothing succeeds like success, after all.

Women in Charge
There is no disputing the fact that actresses today are moving towards playing central roles. Since Kangana Ranaut conquered hearts and box office territory with the surprise hit Queen in 2014, she has featured in a slew of films that she has shouldered on her own strength. Having faced several hurdles in her journey in films, she vouches, “I worked towards my mental fitness. While the determination and zeal to reach the top had made every obstacle look minuscule, I set out to face them.”

She has never shied away from telling us how she did it…“Slowly but steadily, I worked towards becoming a better version of myself and did not letting anything or anyone deter my path to success. I experienced inequality on the professional front, on several occasions, and fought my way up the ladder to stand shoulder to shoulder with my male counterparts.”

Coming up for this straight-talking, sensation actress is Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi which has her essaying the warrior queen and holding fort, the ‘man’ of the moment. Needless to add, she will also be the centre of attention in the film that Shekhar Kapur announced that he’s writing for her. Kangana playing an 85-year-old woman – that is bound to grab eyeballs and how!

Power Position
Rani Mukerji will make her comeback in Hichki, a film in which she plays a teacher with a speech defect caused by Tourette syndrome. She is the hero of the piece on every level, as the film focuses on turning disadvantages into opportunities and facing and overcoming the challenges that life throws up.

Having played central roles in No One Killed Jessica, and Mardaani, she declares, “It's always inspiring to be other people because I portray so many powerful women on screen. Some of my characters have inspired me.”

Recently Sonam Kapoor, who secured her place as a power-packed performer in the award-winning Neerja, spoke about the need for more films that revolve around women.

Incidentally, her forthcoming film Veere Di Wedding, also starring Kareena Kapoor Khan, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania, is a woman-oriented flick all the way.

“There should be more such films, this should be the norm,” declared Sonam. “In Hollywood there are many female-oriented films that are such big blockbusters and are entertaining. We don't have such films in India. Julia Roberts was huge in the '80s and '90s. Here it was about my dad (Anil Kapoor) and the other actors. The '90s were about the Khans (Aamir, Shah Rukh and Salman). With our generation, we are at least getting the opportunity to do that, but we are 20 years behind,” she averred.

Arm-candy? No thanks
Women in Bollywood are no longer content with playing arm-candy to the heroes, and eye-candy for the audience. They want more. And the good thing is, they’re getting it. Not long ago, Alia Bhatt refused a film opposite Prabhas because she is more concerned with setting a benchmark for herself by taking up only good performance-oriented roles. She is already acknowledged and admired for her film choices; there’s no way she wants to accept anything that ends up making her look like part of the supporting cast. Yes, even if the hero in question is the phenomenal Baahubali sensation.

Swara Bhaskar in Anarkali of Aarah, the all-women cast of Lipstick Under My Burkha, Anushka Sharma in Phillauri and Pari, Sonakshi Sinha in Noor, and Shraddha Kapoor in Haseena: The Queen of Mumbai… roles featuring women in the lead roles are on a definite rise. Even Secret Superstar was all about the young character played by Zaira Wasim and less about its producer who played a brief role in the film, Aamir Khan.

Aamir had no qualms at all about the female character occupying centre-stage. He had declared, “Even if I am comparing it to Dangal, which is about female empowerment, you still had a strong male character Mahavir, their father, as the protagonist there. It was through his pure encouragement as a parent that his girls achieved what they did. He was still the driving force… In Secret Superstar, there is no male carrying the movie forward. It’s the women who drive the story forward.”

Alankrita Shrivastava, director of Lipstick Under My Burkha, believes popular culture is shaped by man’s perspective, and it is therefore important to encourage more women directors, artists and storytellers. From Kahaani in 2012 to Heroine, English Vinglish, Highway, Gulaab Gang, Revolver Rani, Bobby Jasoos, Mary Kom, NH 10, Piku, Pink, Parched, Kahaani 2, Nil Battey Sannata, Chalk and Duster, Dear Zindagi, Phobia, Jai Gangaajal, to Naam Shabana and Begum Jaan, the numbers are only increasing. These films put female characters at the centre and mostly steer clear of formula.

The male star-driven industry’s attitudes about women are changing. And with many of these women-centric films finding success at the box office, the stage is set for more such women-starrers to follow. Here’s doffing our hat to the new poster girls, the real heroes!