970x125
Even among the privileged and the elite, women often have it worse compared to men, and often face sexism and discrimination. And the same holds true in the case of celebrities. Not just that female celebrities have to tackle objectification and exploitation on screen, but they are also forced to deal with casual sexism and discrimination off screen, leaving them to fight for virtually everything. Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha recently opened up about how such toxic practices of sexism happen in the workplace, with male actors receiving even better washrooms compared to women.
970x125
“As soon as a guy delivers a hit, no matter if he is an insider or an outsider, he will get five new options immediately. But women have to keep struggling. I have been saying this since the time of Pyaar Ka Punchnama (2011). For a girl to break out and get those options… I am not saying that she has to become an overnight sensation or anything… What does an actor want once their movie is a hit? To get a few options for potential future projects from which they can choose. That’s it. They just need opportunities. We don’t get as many (options) as heroes do,” she observed during a chat Nayandeep Rakshit on his with YouTube channel.
She also maintained that male stars often get bigger vanity vans. “There have been times when I went around asking, ‘Can I use the hero’s vanity van for 5 minutes? He’s not here anyway. Can I use the washrooms?’ Because they are nicer than mine. However, I won’t complain or bicker at that time. I tell myself that I will bring myself to that point where I get these things by default,” she noted.
“In my earlier days, I used to fly economy class. These days, I generally don’t, unless there are no other tickets available and I absolutely have to travel that day. But when it’s a matter of choice, I’ve always flown business class. Once, I was playing a small role in a film. All the other actors were seated in business class, while I was in economy class along with the assistants of technicians. It was an international flight, and the journey was quite long. I had made friends with some of the people (in business class). They said, ‘Nush, come and sit with us.’ That was an option as well. But I said, ‘I won’t come because this is the place that was given to me. But I will come to a place where I will fly business class and they will book my tickets with the production house’s money, not mine.’ I have managed to make that happen,” she added.
She also recalled facing a rough patch in life where she had no work for two years, and this happened after she delivered the biggest hit of her career. While she did not name the film, she mentioned that she did not work for two years after she was dropped by her management agency after delivering her biggest hit so far.
“Once, one of my films became a blockbuster. I was with a certain management agency at that time. After the film became huge, my manager called me for a coffee. I went and started chitchatting. Meanwhile, the manager said, ‘Sorry, we have to let you go. We can’t manage for you anymore. We are not able to get things done for you.’ But my film had just become a hit; what more should a person do? Though I tried to control my emotions, I started crying as they were giving out reasons,” she said.
Nushrratt continued, “After they left, I sat there alone, crying while drinking my coffee, after having just given the biggest hit in my career. It was a terrible feeling. I had no idea what to do after that. I had no work for 1-2 years at that time, nor did I have a team. Since I had just delivered a hit, it didn’t occur to people that I hadn’t signed on anything. They thought I was just being cautious with my choices. But the fact was, I was crying, without a team and a support system.”
Story continues below this ad
Nushrratt was last seen in Amazon Prime Video’s Chhorii 2. She has appeared in hit films like Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Dream Girl, Pyaar Ka Punchnama among others.
970x125
