More women filmmakers bring change

From winning the Miss Universe crown to navigating her way in Bollywood, coming up with a prenatal yoga series and now debuting on television, Lara Dutta Bhupathi has enjoyed various roles in showbiz. She says with increasing participation of women behind the camera, there's a change visible in the entertainment industry.

"I think the whole scene is changing because of more participation of women, and so there are that much better-written parts that women are getting in films. I think the younger lot -- Alia Bhatt, Anushka Sharma, Deepika Padukone and Kangana Ranaut -- they are really lucky to be a part of Indian cinema at a time when more women filmmakers are telling stories that deserve to be told.

"This is only improving the image of our women in Indian cinema," Lara told during in an interview.
She produced a film "Chalo Dilli". She says, “The number of female filmmakers has increased. They are coming up with the right story and thankfully, studios are ready to invest money and taking female filmmakers seriously. On the other hand, actresses like Kangana and Anushka are also producing their own films. I think that is how we are getting more and more empowered."

While some of the iconic filmmakers like Mira Nair and Aparna Sen have represented Indian cinema on the global platform in the past, in the last few years names like Zoya Akhtar, Alankrita Shrivastava, Gauri Shinde and Konkona Sen Sharma have gone behind the camera for movies.

Actress Anushka has backed some offbeat films like "NH10", "Phillauri" and the latest "Pari" under her home production, while Priyanka Chopra is producing a slew of regional films. And who can miss out Ekta Kapoor.

Lara is making her debut on Indian television with a dance reality show titled "High Fever... Dance Ka Naya Tevar".

By: Arundhuti Banerjee