Mid Day caught up with actor activist Rahul Bose who was in town recently. PS: The self proclaimed, 'short and ugly' actor has a pronounced weak-in-the-knees effect even on 40 something women
Mid Day caught up with actor activist Rahul Bose who was in town recently. PS: The self proclaimed, 'short and ugly' actor has a pronounced weak-in-the-knees effect even on 40 something women
You launched Trailwalker, the 48-hour walk to be held in Bangalore between February 10 and 12, 2012 organised by Oxfam, the organisation that you are a global ambassador of. Would the campaign have had a similar effect without you?
You tell me. 
It wouldn't have. We live in a celeb-obsessed world.
I feel, it's about having the right celebrity. If you have a ditzy 18-year-old dumb blonde for a serious cause, would it help? No!
ADVERTISEMENT
Why is the cause of gender equality closest to your heart?
I grew up in a gender equal family. So, what I see outside drives me crazy. Having muscles don't make you superior to the other gender. It's a crazy way for the world to be. I think boys should be introduced to art and creative fields in school as that makes them more compassionate towards women. I spoke to 500 boys and girls in a village in UP, trying to tell them the same thing. The kind of double standards that still exist there will perhaps not make sense to you and me. A few men said, "Humaare ghar mein to ladki maa hain, par who parai nahin kar sakti. They can't even marry someone of their choice." Our entire male-female ratio is falling. The picture is grimmer than before. 
What's the solution?
The world follows patriarchy as does India. That's where work needs to be done. If children are introduced to art in school and not treated like future cash cows, then that's a beginning. They'll then grow up and treat their women with dignity and respect.u00a0 
All for a good cause: The thinking woman's sex symbolu00a0 caught in
myriad moodsu00a0Pics/ Ramesh HS
The Trailwalkers aims to reduce the gap between the two Indias, the divide between Muslims and non-Muslims, Dalits and non-Dalits. In that context, comment on the Aarakshan controversy.
It's infantile. Premature, knee jerk and fuelled by a number of political
agendas. I haven't seen the film yet, and will form an opinion on it only after watching it.
Although you have said in previous interviews that films don't really change society, do you think they are a perennial target of agenda-driven political parties?
Yes. If you don't agree with what a film has to say, don't watch it. But don't stop it from being released. Godfather was hardly pro-government/ peace/ humanity or anti-crime. But it's an iconic film. Art has to be separate from these agendas. Films are certainly easy prey as there's a lot riding on them. No producer wants to delay the release of a film as they invest tons of money, and it's easy to take advantage of that situation. Of course, there are some films created to foster hatred and some show women in the most disrespectful manner. These are just veiled pornography.
Does it disturb you that most people in the film industry are not socially responsible?
Not at all. How many journalists, waiters or banquet managers are socially minded? The act of compassion can't be taught. It has to be felt. An actress once told me that no one serves society the way she does. 'How many people light up the screen and provide entertainment to thousands for three hours?,' she asked me. She's right. That's her social work.
What helps on sensitising citizens to society?
We should have more museums, art galleries, street plays, city festivals and cultural events. The oxygen of art must flow. That's one small step towards it.u00a0
Finally, this new look must be for a film.
Yes, it's for a Tamil/Hindi film I'm doing with one of the gods of cinema - Kamal Hasan. There's also Laptop, a Bengali film in which I play au00a0 publisher, and is part of four stories and Midnight's Children.u00a0u00a0
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
