Mumbai: 'Changemakers' Authors on How Women Are Transforming Bollywood
Summary
There have always been, of course, stratospherically popular female stars such as Sridevi and Priyanka Chopra, but behind the camera, in the writers rooms, the executive offices and boardrooms, men have held sway. But that power dynamic is shifting, and more markedly and rapidly than people realize, according to Changemakers: Twenty Women Transforming Bollywood Behind the Scenes. Written by journalists Mallika Kapur and Gayatri Rangachari Shah, the book was released in October 2018, coincidentally just as the #MeToo movement made a breakthrough in India and led to a wave of allegations against prominent men in the entertainment industry. The book charts how these women have overcome the challenges of institutional sexism, ageism and other hurdles to not only find success in the industry but also transform it from within, shifting the focus of the stories put out by Bollywood and by extension change the conversation in Indian society. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Kapur and Shah discussed the inspiration behind their book, how entry into Bollywood has become more meritocratic and the challenges that still face women working in the industry.