Siddharth Anand’s upcoming film Fighter has been billed as India’s first aerial action film. The teaser is out, but no one’s talking about high-octane dogfight scenes. Instead, it’s Deepika Padukone in a black monokini that has caused a stir. And the reason? How dare Bollywood depict a fighter pilot—and that too a squadron leader of the Air Force—in a bikini? Models, dancers, musicians and artists can wear bikinis and party, but not women IAS officers, fighter pilots or teachers.
Padukone, who plays Squadron Leader Minal Rathore aka Minni, has managed to raise the hackles of India’s self-proclaimed culture brigade. The teaser has a fleeting shot of an intimate moment with Squadron leader Shamsher Pathania, played by Hrithik Roshan. But that was enough for the onslaught of outrage.
Earlier this year, Padukone’s orange bikini in Pathan had also created quite a stir, but this time it’s not about the colour or the outfit itself. Now, it’s because she plays a fighter pilot in the movie, scheduled for a Republic Day release.
The respect for a woman in a ‘serious’ profession seems to diminish the instant she wears a swimsuit.
The piece of cloth has irked people so much that they’ve called the depiction “perverted” and “cheap”.
@deepikapadukone i hope you have some shame left…with every movie you droop low as a woman,as an artist. U can remove all ur clothes for all we care, but do not demean our iaf woman fighters. U R CHEAP, THEY AREN'T
— KK (@ForeverKrishnas) December 8, 2023
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Facing scrutiny
The comments are a reflection of our warped moral code.
The question of professionalism or what constitutes professional conduct for women seems to hinge on one’s choice of outfits.
Public service professionals face the worst of the scrutiny, simply because what they wear is taken as a reflection of how serious they are about their work. What happens if a female IAS officer or a top bureaucrat is seen on a beach in a bikini or at a party dancing with friends?
Former Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin faced backlash when a video of her partying found its way onto the internet. The then 36-year-old politician has never shied away from acknowledging that she does like to dance, but after the videos were leaked, she found herself confronted with clamours asking her to take a drug test, questioning her competence and her ability to lead the nation. It triggered debates in the country over how much partying is okay for the head of a state.
In India, the judgment is harsher. And this backlash does not always begin and end on social media.
In 2021, a Kolkata professor lost her job over a bikini picture shared on her private Instagram account. The 30-year-old former assistant professor at the prestigious St Xaviers University alleged that she did not just face moral scrutiny over her pictures, but also asked to resign. She had to write a letter of apology.
Her pictures had been discovered on the phone of a first-year student by his father. He then proceeded to submit a written complaint to the university about the ‘obscene’ pictures.
No one was bothered by the fact that the pictures were taken from her personal account. The onus was on the woman, simply because she is a teacher.
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Credibility and a bikini
A saree blouse can be deep-cut, but a bikini is against Indian culture. The depth of a blouse also decides how ‘seriously’ the woman should be taken.
Bollywood leading ladies have always been scrutinised and judged for sartorial choices. In 1967, when Sharmila Tagore wore a bikini for the first time in the film, An Evening in Paris, disapproving murmurs reportedly reached even the parliament.
Taapsee Pannu, known for her acting prowess in Pink (2016), Thappad (2020) and Haseen Dillruba (2021) was also bullied online for wearing a bikini in Judwaa 2 (2017).
Padukone as a fighter pilot will neither be the last reel or real woman to face questions of credibility.
We would rather scrutinise a woman’s professional performance based on her personal choices, sartorial or otherwise, than talk about the gender pay gap, lack of opportunities or workplace harassment.
It’s time we came to terms with the fact that women can wear bikinis and still fly planes.
Views are personal.
(Edited by Theres Sudeep)