Despite the heavy promotion of Bollywood actress Janhvi Kapoor’s debut in Devara, her performance as a village belle chasing the hero left audiences underwhelmed. Her role, which was highly publicized due to her association with superstar Jr NTR, fell short of expectations. “She got good publicity working with Jr NTR, but her ill-defined role offered little scope, reduced to a few scenes and songs like Chuttamalle,” a producer commented. Unfortunately, Kapoor’s experience is not unique in Tollywood, as actresses like Kavya Thapar in Double iSmart and Priyanka Mohan in Saripodha Sanivaaram faced similar limitations. Mohan’s role as a cop was reduced to merely assisting the male lead.
“It’s disappointing because actresses in Tollywood are capable of much more than just looking pretty and dancing,” director Teja expressed. He pointed out that many Telugu films tend to favor male protagonists, with their larger-than-life action scenes dominating the narrative. “With action scenes and heroism taking over, heroines are bound to get sidelined,” he added.
This imbalance is evident in films where actresses like Sreeleela (Skandha), Tamannaah (Bholaa Shankar), Shruti Haasan (Veera Simha Reddy), Ritu Varma (Mark Antony), and Anu Emmanuel (Ravanasura) were relegated to supporting roles focused on dancing and comic relief, while male leads controlled the screen. “Even legends like Amitabh Bachchan and Rajinikanth gave significant roles to women in their films. Aishwarya Rai had a crucial part in Robot, and Baahubali owed much of its success to Anushka Shetty and Ramya Krishna,” Teja continued. He stressed the need for directors to strike a balance between the hero and heroine roles instead of leaning too heavily in favor of the male lead.
However, producer Vishnu Induri dismissed claims of bias. “It’s all about the script, and the idea of bias is a myth. The industry is hero-driven because superstars draw crowds. There are films with strong female roles too, so it’s unfair to label it male chauvinism,” Induri argued.
Actress Priyamani weighed in, offering a nuanced perspective. “Yes, the industry has always favored heroes, but actresses are carving out their own space. We understand our screen time and relevance when we take on a project. Working with big stars helps us reach wider audiences. Actresses have shown they can do more than just look pretty and dance—it’s part of the job, but we’re capable of much more,” she stated.
Newer filmmakers are also evolving, giving heroines more complex and action-oriented roles. “The industry is changing, so let’s drop the stereotypes,” Priyamani concluded.
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