'Wish actresses hold placard against sexual exploitation in Bollywood'

Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri says it is good that many actresses are sharing photographs of themselves holding placards urging action in the Kathua rape case incident. However, he wishes they also voice their concerns against sexual exploitation in the Hindi film industry.

Several Bollywood actresses like Kareena Kapoor Khan, Swara Bhasker, Sonam Kapoor, Shruti Seth and Mini Mathur have held placards asking for justice for the eight-year-old girl, who was kidnapped, sedated, starved, gangraped and murdered in the Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir.

"It's good to see film heroines holding placards to make a point on Kathua tragedy. I wish they also hold a placard against the sexual exploitation of women in Bollywood. I wish they also refuse to do roles that portray heroines only as sex objects and dumb bimbos. Can they?" Agnihotri tweeted on Sunday.

Sexual abuse has been a topic of much debate in Bollywood and Hollywood in recent times. Prominent names from the entertainment industry have been discussing how men in power take advantage of women in exchange for taking forward their dreams.

However, Bollywood celebrities haven't named and shamed.

--IANS

dc/rb/vd