5 Male Feminists From Bollywood
Several male feminists have bloomed from the booming showbiz called Bollywood, which has always been targeted by feminists for the objectification of women. These inspiring male feminists are the real paragons to the modern men. These pro-feminists wish to end violence against women and they firmly believe in gender equality. These levelheaded gentlemen try to make a difference in the universal fight against the injustices done to women.
1) Amitabh Bachchan: The Living Legend and the Modern Thespian of Bollywood has left no stone unturned—both on and off-screen to empower women. Recently appointed as the UN Ambassador for Girl Child, the eminent Bollywood celebrity hopes to “freed the country of the malaise of discrimination against women”. He has also endorsed the “Bell Bajao” campaign against domestic violence. His noble endeavors always reach the zenith of success—just like he was a part of eradicating Polio in India, he would be a cause to kick out gender inequality.
2) Farhan Akhtar: Going beyond his various avatars in the showbiz, this Bollywood star and the recently appointed UN Women’s South Asia Goodwill Ambassador proved himself to be a real hero by launching a social campaign called MARD- an abbreviation of ‘Men Against Rape and Discrimination’. Spurred by a mishap in which his friend was victimized and murdered in a sexual assault, this real man came out with this initiative. He recently voiced in support of Deepika Padukone and Gauhar Khan, when patriarchy tried to make them preys. A tweet by this real star: “If you are a man who respects women… her rights, her dignity, her independence, her mind, her body, her life… you are a #MARD”.
3) Boman Irani: While on-screen Boman Irani has always entertained the onlookers; off-screen also he has awakened innumerous people by lending support to an anti-domestic violence campaign. The ambassador of the “Bell Bajao” campaign once said, “Domestic violence is across all social and economical classes of the society. It’s like a cancer which our families are infected with. We need to amass courage and confront it as it is a threat to our social identity…Men have an active role to play in order to change attitudes… I am certain to see an India free from domestic violence”.
4) Aamir Khan: With his talk show “Satyameva Jayate”, Aamir Khan brought many social issues to lime light. Women’s empowerment was one of the central concerns of the show. It made women to break the silence, in the cases of domestic violence. He fights against alcoholism among women. He had pledged for the Vogue magazine’s initiative for women’s empowerment. He also showed concerns about women’s portrayal on the big screen. Supporting the “One Billion Rising” campaign to end violence against women, he said, “I believe that to combat violence against women, men will have to change. Hitting women is not a sign of masculinity. Instead, it shows cowardice. If we truly want to be real men we will have to first learn to be sensitive.”
5) John Abraham: The charming hero, John Abraham, rendered his support to the acid attack victims, by joining hands with “Fever Voice of Change” campaign. “It`s very important to respect a woman, but we men tend to forget that. So, it is very important that parents should teach their sons to be courteous towards them. The way a father treats his wife, his son also follows the same”, he said (Zeenews).
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About the Author: This article is contributed by Gayathri Devi. Gayathri has completed her M.Phil. in English Literature from Tamilnadu. Literature instilled her in the thoughts of feminism. And gradually, she was attracted towards this concept and she says it has changed many of her perspectives towards our community & that is how she landed to Respect Women.
