What women want

Counting herself lucky to reprise Bholi Punjaban’s role in Fukrey 3, Richa says filmmakers must create edgier parts for women

In her 15-year career, Richa Chadha has brought diverse characters to the screen. Undeniably, Bholi Punjaban from the Fukrey franchise remains her most memorable role. The actor believes the character’s abandon and fearless nature make her stand out. As she reprises her role in the upcoming Fukrey 3, Chadha says that she has been fortunate to play such a character considering the Hindi film industry is usually hesitant to write edgy parts for women. “While audiences appreciate women in risqué, villainous roles, writers and filmmakers seem hesitant to provide them with these opportunities. We need to break this stereotype and encourage the creation of edgier characters for women,” she states.

Playing a gangster in the Varun Sharma, Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh and Pankaj Tripathi-starrer has been a joyride for Chadha. Happy that OTT offerings depict women in their myriad shades, she believes mainstream Bollywood needs to follow the cue and move away from creating one-dimensional roles. “Women in mainstream Bollywood are more than capable of carrying complex, edgy, and risky characters. Parallel avenues often have grey female characters, but not so much in mainstream Hindi films. I don’t think Bholi’s character would have been as interesting had she not been a woman.”

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