‘Don’t strip mothers of their sensuality’: Pooja Bhatt on portrayal of moms on screen

Ahead of Mother’s Day, actor-filmmaker Pooja Bhatt has offered her take on the depiction of moms on screen. Pooja recently played a mother, who also happened to be a business honcho, on the Netflix show, Bombay Begums.

She said that she would like for motherhood to not be the only defining trait of certain characters on screen, and that the ‘sensuality’ of these characters should be retained.

Citing the example of the women she’s played in the past, she told a leading daily, “I think playing a mother has always served me very well. Both Zakhm and Bombay Begums are set in totally different worlds and are about totally different women. As far as portrayals of mothers go, we are taking baby steps in the right direction but have miles to go as far as the perception of the audience and their tastes are concerned.”

She added, “Don’t strip us of our sensuality. Mothers should not be portrayed merely as sacrificial women who have tossed their femininity aside to care for their families. My character Rani in Bombay Begums is caring, yet needy and manipulative at times, but above all, she is sensual. She grows along with her teenage daughter and is only able to establish a real connection with her only when she lets go of her own defenses and speaks from a place of truth and compassion.”

Also read: Pooja Bhatt on directing Jism’s intimate scenes: ‘Told Bipasha Basu you decide how far you want to go’

Pooja recently spoke about the difference a female perspective can bring on a film set, especially in certain situations. Recalling the direction she gave actor Bipasha Basu in Jism, she told the BBC in a recent interview, “For intimate scenes, I handpick the crew who won’t make an actress feel uncomfortable on the set because it’s important to have the gaze right. In 2002, when I was making Jism, an erotic thriller, I told Bipasha Basu that as a woman and as an actor I won’t be asking you to do anything you’re not comfortable with.”