Even though it is 2016, sexism is rampant in the movies. Female characters are often used as mere props and are often portrayed using age-old archetypes and stereotypes. The case is even more egregious when it comes to popular Indian films, in which a large part of the courtship involves the hero harassing the female protagonist into falling in love with him.
Enter comedy group All India Bakchod. Their latest satire takes off from a 2015 court ruling in Australia that involved stalking. The lawyer of the accused, one Sandesh Baliga, said that this behaviour was the result of his client having viewed Bollywood films in which stalking leads to romantic success. The argument proved to be convincing. The court in Hobart, Tasmania did not convict Baliga, citing his cultural background.
The video stars actors Vicky Kaushal and Richa Chadda from 2015’s Masaan as the main characters in the classic love story while YouTube celebrity Mallika Dua provides the voice of reason. The rest of the video riffs on classic songs from the 1960s to the 2010s. There is a wealth of material. But there seems to be little one can do about it. Because, as one of the characters sings in the video, write as many blogs as you want to, the songs are always going to be chart-busters.