Siddhant Chaturvedi on how to make women feel safe on set: Listen to what makes her uncomfortable

Siddhant Chaturvedi

With Yudhra, Siddhant Chaturvedi is excited to show his action avatar on screen. But there is something else that has him even more thrilled about Ravi Udyawar's directorial venture - co-star Malavika Mohanan's character. "She is not a damsel in distress, she is as strong as I am in the film. Yudhra will break the stereotypes [of a female character in action films]," he says proudly.

When reading scripts, one of the things Chaturvedi keeps an eye out for is the presentation of female characters. "I've been raised by women. There is mom, and in the film industry, it was Zoya [Akhtar]. I feel proud when women are presented in a raw and strong way. I like women being shown stronger than me and the protagonist in a film."

A dialogue about women's safety has been reignited after the Hema Committee report shed light on the exploitation of women in the Malayalam film industry. As the male lead, Chaturvedi sits at the top of a film's hierarchy structure. How does he ensure that women working with him feel safe? By listening to them, says the actor. "It's about the environment you create to make a woman feel safe. When you're approaching any scene, you have to make sure that the person is feeling comfortable; if that's not the case, you flag it to your first AD, director and producer. Listen carefully to what makes her uncomfortable. Listening is the most powerful tool that people don't use. Listen, process and go to the root of the problem - why is it happening and how did we, as a responsible crew, let it happen? It's the responsibility of every man and woman on the set to look out for each other. If it happens to someone, it needs to be addressed then and there."