Time To Acknowledge Girl Power In Action, Not Just In Words Says Rakeysh Omparkash Mehra

By News Helpline – 20th August 2021

Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra says that with recent performance at Olympics, the girl power should be acknowledged in action and not just in words.

Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra along with Mrunal Thakur and co-author Reeta Ramamurthy Gupta launched his debut autobiography, The Stranger In The Mirror.

Interacting with News Helpline, when asked if cinema on sports has an impact on society and culture, especially the way people behave, when they see someone successful on the big screen, Mehra said, “Olympics is the greatest event, nothing can be bigger than that, as far as sports are concerned. What is very special for us besides the seven medals and we need to much better and not be satisfied with just seven medals as this is huge country with a lot of potential, is that the women stood out. Now that is a huge statement for our country”

Known for sports dramas such as Toofan and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, filmmaker Rakeysh further added, “I think it would be very simple if we’d hand over our country to women, and men should take a back seat and retire. It will make things very easier and faster. The story of each girl out there is incredible. I have tried to know about them as much as I can in my own limited way. They all fought major obstacles, in their neighbourhood, within their families and society, supported by their loved ones or not supported by them, but it just kept them going”

“Winners have stood out, but there are many more stories. There is Dutee Chand, who didn’t make it, and her story is incredible. There is a huge learning curve for our country that finally the girl power should be acknowledged, not just in words but in action. If you look at any evolved society in the world, culturally, economically, socially and  politically, nations like China, USA, Japan, France, Germany and more, they all are very sporting nations. So there is connection, it is not just in my head, but there is a definite connection” added Rakeysh.

The book is published by Rupa, is peppered with anecdotes from Rakeysh's life--from the 'chai-biscuit'-hostel days to the popping of the proverbial champagne.

The book features first-person accounts of Waheeda Rahman, AR Rahman, Manoj Bajpayee, Abhishek Bachchan, Farhan Akhtar, Sonam Kapoor, Raveena Tandon, Ronnie Screwvala, Atul Kulkarni, R Madhavan, Divya Dutta and Prahlad Kakar. It has a foreword by AR Rahman and an afterword by Aamir Khan.