Amid the success of the spy thriller Dhurandhar, actor Saumya Tandon has spoken out about criticism that claims the film promotes misogyny and aggressive male behavior.
The debate started when a user on X (formerly Twitter) criticized the film and its male leads, stating they support negative stereotypes and encourage harmful behavior towards women.
The post, which quickly gained traction online, read in part: “Step 1: be a male actor in Bollywood who is known for being a soft-boy. Step 2: realise you are becoming irrelevant and your female audience is losing interest. Step 3: grow out your beard and hair to look like a mindless caveman with no hygiene, so you can cater to the male audience. Step 4: star in a misogynistic movie as a manchild with 0 emotional intelligence and get thousands of fanboys and fanmen.”
It continued, “Step 5: promote aggression and misogyny under the name of 'masculinity' and earn crores of rupees while real men get influenced by your actions and go around doing real harm to women. But you don’t care because you’re rich and have no ethics. Some more such examples: Shahid Kapoor, Ranbir Kapoor.”
The post sparked a widespread debate about the responsibilities of filmmakers and actors in showing gender dynamics.
In response, Saumya defended the film's portrayal of women. She emphasized the dignity and agency given to female characters, even in a male-dominated setting.
She wrote on X, “Agreed. In the universe Dhurandhar is set in, with the societal norms the director chose to depict, it is a male-dominated world, yet the women are treated with dignity. They aren’t beaten, objectified, or shown as one of many wives, even though that society could have allowed it. It’s important to remember we’re dealing with a very different world.”
Saumya Tandon also clarified that the film’s stylistic and narrative choices influenced its tone. “Sorry that the grain of this story doesn’t allow for glamorous heroines singing songs on exotic beaches, that may work for other scripts, but not in this one. That said, as an actor, I do hope I also get opportunities to be part of women-centric narratives,” she added.
In Dhurandhar, Saumya plays Ulfat, the wife of Rehman Dakait (Akshaye Khanna).
The film is set in Pakistan and follows an Indian spy played by Ranveer Singh who goes undercover in terror networks in Lyari. The cast also features Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, and R Madhavan in important roles.
Despite the controversy, Dhurandhar has enjoyed notable commercial success, reportedly earning over 150 crore at the box office.
Directed by Aditya Dhar, the film sparks ongoing discussion about gender representation, social norms, and how women are portrayed in high-stakes action stories.
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