Amitabh Bachchan recently posted a video on his Facebook, reading out a letter to his two grand-daughters Navya Naveli and Aaradhya Bachchan.
Now a lot of hoopla has been made about this particular video, and well, the thing that bugs me most is how most are taking it in a negative manner.
Here, is my take on it and an attempt on contradicting all the negative things that are being said about it:
- It Is A Publicity Stunt:
The first argument that people are making against this video is that it is all just a publicity stunt for Mr. Bachchan’s upcoming film Pink.
Hmm… I say, so what?
Not saying it actually is, but even if it is then so what? If one looks at the message behind it and what he is preaching, then perhaps more films should go down this route.
He is not encouraging any bad habits or covering up the wrong doings of society. Instead he is putting forth a good example of how women should be treated. And that they are not ‘paraya dhan’, a phrase that one can see being repeated by families all over India and that too quite proudly.
And so, if he is using is humongous mass appeal to put out a good message, then what is so wrong about that?
- It Is Patriarchal:
Ok, so even I noticed his obvious eviction of the matriarchs, when he said that his granddaughters carry the family legacy.
And while it is not correct, I suppose and this is purely my opinion and I do not mean to be insensitive in any manner, but one must look at it from a realistic perspective.
Ok, I know…, I just know I will be getting hate comments and all, but in India, it is extremely obvious that the word of men is given more weight than that of women.
Patriarchy is still very much alive and thriving, especially in the more rural and underprivileged classes. And in those areas, what men say is correct, women on the other hand are dismissed as not being worthy of listening to.
And it truly breaks my heart, but just imagine, that someone who deeply admires and respects Amitabh Bachchan watching this video. Wouldn’t they be affected by his words? And perhaps even be inclined to change their mindset towards the women in their lives?
I am not saying that women cannot be dynamic and change the world, they have actually done that, but one should also keep in mind the society we are living in.
And so, the fact that it comes down to is that, even if it is patriarchal, I feel that the end message he is promoting could be changing someone’s ideology about women, and that to me, matter more than whether he is being a feminist or not.
- The Many Arguments Against His Wife, Daughter in Law and More:
The last thing that I would touch upon is the argument by many that if he is so progressive, then why did he not let his wife, Jaya Bachchan, work after marriage?
Or why did he make his daughter-in-law, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan marry a tree?
Ok, so for the tree one, not even going there. Some people believe it to be legitimate religious thing, and so not touching that.
But I would only ask one thing, why bring down the whole positive vibe of the video?
I mean, the man is preaching a good thing, and setting a good example, then why is everyone so intent on bringing the negative out?
Have we as a society, truly become so jaded that we, cannot even see a positive thing happen? That we have to bring out the bad side of it and just pop the bubble.
Signing off, I would just comment that, I am not saying that Amitabh Bachchan is the most perfect man, I am sure even he has made mistakes along the way.
The thing that matters is what he is doing right now, and how he is going about it.
So one can call this video a publicity stunt, patriarchal or misogynistic or anything else. But I believe that at the heart of it, this video and the message that it carries is a beautiful one, and should be spread all around.
Image Credits: Amitabh Bachchan twitter and Google Images
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http://edtimes.in/2016/08/nonsense-celebs-endorse-in-the-name-of-ads-now-to-be-penalised-for-being-misleading/
http://edtimes.in/2016/08/sexism-the-slow-poison-in-todays-world/
