GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF DATA WE HAVE COLLECTED

Bollywood or rather films in general, often create a make belief world wherein a suitable narrative is built and unravelled. Sometimes the utopia is too far-fetched and fails to convince the audience but recently the films in Bollywood are projecting more relatable stories that are simulations of the real world we live in. The analysis shows 64.4% of the responses advocating the statement because of the history that has already been scripted by the Bollywood films in the past. 9.9% of the responses shows a disagreement because of the recent critically acclaimed films that are not conforming to the conventional norms of the Hindi film industry.

Films have a responsibility towards the society because of the impressionable nature of the audience. People tend to worship their favourite actors and actresses and their actions in a commercial film govern the mentality of the viewers in a considerable way. Thought provoking cinema has often propagated the right message and took shape into movements to dispel stigmas from the country. One such stigma is gender inequality that still prevails in the country. In the past, Bollywood validated gender inequality by commodifying women in commercial films by portraying them in a very lewd way or insignificantly and treating them as objects of desire and pleasure. Recently there have been quite a few number of films where women have had strong and inspiring roles that broke stereotypes and championed gender equality.

The statistics show that more than 60% of the responses agree with the statement and 21.8% disagree because of the films that released recently where women were represented in respectable roles.

Misogyny is the hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women or girls and a misogynist believes in inferiority of the female gender. In the last five years, there have been countless films where women have been marginalized unjustly and were employed only to titillate the audience. In the period 1980-90s women were portrayed in the cheapest way in songs that were replete with sexual innuendos. In the period 2010-2015, the scenario had not changed much and people continued to patronize such loathsome commercial films. Almost 50% of the responses are in unanimity with the statement and 33.7% are undecided probably because of general unawareness. 13.9% of the responses have disagreed because of their ignorance of fundamental human rights and decorum.

Commercial blockbusters in Bollywood have time and again glorified the male gender and indulged people in toxic masculinity. It is one of the major reasons why women continue to be oppressed at workplaces and households. The narrow minded society is constantly looking for outlets through which pseudo masculinity can be exercised and misogynistic films act as these outlets. This is a hindrance to societal progress. This is the reason why more than 60% of the responses have agreed with the statement. 10.9% are undecided because of not viewing commercial cinema and 19.8% have disagreed because of the recent films that have broken away from the shackles of such baseless and toxic gender stereotypes.

Bollywood is an effective platform to propagate opinions on socially relevant issues. In the last three years there have been various films addressing socially relevant issues like gender discrimination, caste discrimination, sanitation, injustice meted out to the common people, corruption in political structures and many more. These films act as eye openers and make the audience more aware of the stigmas that persist in the country. Bollywood has been successful in reaching out to millions of people and reinforced eradication of social backwardness in the country. More than 75% of the responses are in agreement with the statement and only a mere 18.8% are either in disagreement or are undecided.

Backward, baseless and ridiculous customs and rituals are still in practice and it is not only seen in the fringes but also in urban cities of the country. Few customs like dowry, child labour and not letting married women work still prevail. Bollywood has depicted these social issues with a lot of dexterity in the narratives of the films which in turn revealed the absurdity of these rituals and customs. The movies act as eye openers and have been instrumental in alleviating the country of such social evils considerably.  Almost every response in the survey has either agreed or strongly agreed with the statement because the prevalence of these problems is quite a pressing issue for the civilians of the country.

Films play a pivotal role in moulding thoughts of the audience and recently, through films in the likes of URI, Raazi, PADMAN, BABY etc. Bollywood has contributed to the patriotic fervour of the country. Such films instil love and respect for the nation in the people and keep the people united. It is because of this reason, more than 80% of the responses are in unanimity with the statement owing to the recently released patriotic films that created waves of appreciation in the country.

Unfortunately, the political scenario in the country has been abhorrent to the fundamental rights to speech and expression. The government exercised control over the content of a few films they believed could act as a deterrent and either made sure that those films never released or forced the makers to edit the controversial portions of the film. Several artists from our neighbouring country were banned due to the severance of diplomatic relations between the countries. Recently, a Tollywood film in West Bengal got banned by the regional government despite being certified by the CBFC as the film contained something that the regional government considered unfavourable for the political party. Such intolerance is a hindrance to creativity and artistic expression. It is because of this reason more than 80% of the responses have agreed with the statement as it has not only agitated the filmmakers but also film lovers.

The country needs more films like Gully Boy because it not only went on to earn praises for its cinematic brilliance but it also provided a platform to the rappers to showcase their talent. People were hardly aware of Indian hip hop until Gully Boy released and Indian Rap Artists are getting more well deserved exposure and accolades for their talent and work. There are so many artforms that are yet to be explored and cherished but do not get the exposure. Films play a major role to enable these artforms to reach out to millions and leave impressions. More than 70% of the responses have agreed with the statement and the remaining responses have disagreed or are undecided because of the uncertainty and scepticism that exist.

There is a huge financial divide between the poverty stricken and the affluent and even the middle class society cannot fill in the gap. The lifestyle of slum dwellers and villagers are full of struggles because they do not even enjoy the basic amenities and facilities a healthy family should avail. This gives rise to several kinds of illness and social problems like overpopulation, unemployment, robbery etc. Poor people are often compelled by such circumstances to turn against the law to earn quick money. These issues have been projected in films several times.

More than 73% have agreed with the statement and very few people have disagreed.