Explore the true standing of women in media and film and their stride towards gender parity on the next session of AVID Online

For Immediate Release

The role of women in media and film has been very significant over the decades. From onscreen megastars to modern pop culture icons like Priyanka Chopra, from fearless filmmakers like Zoya Akhtar and Mira Nair to production power houses – many leading ladies have made their mark on the silver screen in and Internationally. In small screen actresses like Poorna Jagannathan are reshaping the way in which the west has been perceiving and portraying women of colour. However, what is the positioning of and what is the true standing of women in the industry today?

The film industry has expanded in recent times and has transcended borders with the help of new age cinema viewing platforms. Despite these developments, most films released have failed to address some of the important issues of gender inequality. In the age of Netflix, women of colour continue to have low screen time and the characters they portray being a mere composite of stereotypes.

How can such a mammoth industry make strides toward achieving gender parity?

US Consulate General and Avid Learning present Lights, Camera and Action for Gender Equality! a panel discussion on gender equality in film and media, the role of women in gender-defying roles in the film industry and shifts in entertainment norms.

Please read on for more details:

Honorary Doctorate,National Award-Winning Director and Producer , Actor, Director and Philanthropist Rahul Bose and Award winning Documentary Filmmaker Miriam Chandy Menacherry will be in conversation with Film Critic and Festival Programmer Udita Jhunjhunwala to discuss and understand the role of women in the media and film industry.

These esteemed changemakers from the worlds of media and entertainment will speak about changing roles of gender in the media. They will speak on achieving equal representation of women in media on and off screen and will examine Bollywood, regional cinema, parallel cinema, independent and documentary genres, media and production houses, etc. to attempt to provide an all-round perspective on the scenario. They will also discuss how they are leveraging film as a medium to spread the message of female empowerment beyond the industry and how the industry is indicative of larger societal struggles as well as progress.

Join these remarkable speakers to learn how they've leveraged the arts to triumph as creative practitioners and mentors for their gender in one of the biggest and most impactful industries.

When: Thursday, 22nd July 2021 | 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

RSVP: www.avidlearning.in

Press Email: Ayeshah Dadachanji on [email protected]

About the Speakers

(Hon) Dr. Vibha Bakshi is a multi-National Award winning film director and producer known for her documentary films that are knocking down patriarchy the world over. She is the recipient of four , awarded by the , the highest recognition in Indian cinema.Vibha was recently conferred the Honorary Doctorate from her alma mater Boston University for successfully activating global movements for change through the power of her films. She received this honour alongside civil rights icon John Lewis and scientist Dr. Anthony Fauci. Recent honourees to receive the Doctorate also included Steven Spielberg.Vibha's latest National Award winning film ‘’ has been selected by the United Nations global HeForShe movement to be shown across 71 priority countries to change the narrative on gender inequality and injustice globally.Her previous groundbreaking National Award winning documentary 'Daughters of Mother India' holds the distinction of being THE MOST AWARDED SOCIAL CAMPAIGN IN THE WORLD – Global Creative Index 2017.Vibha is also co-producer and co-director with Oscar winning filmmaker Maryann DeLeo. Their films have aired on US networks.

Rahul Bose Called the ‘Indian art house icon’, by TIME magazine, Rahul Bose won the Filmfare Award in 2021 for Best Supporting Actor for ‘Bullbul’. His international awards include : Best Actor , Singapore Film Festival, 2000, and Runner Up - John Schlesinger Award for Best Debut Director, 2002. Other awards include : Indian Youth Icon of the Year - Social Justice, Green Globe award for Climate Change, Lt. Governor’s Commendation Award for Services to Andamans & Nicobar, Hakim Khan Sur award for National Integration, GQ’s Man of the Year - Social Justice. In 2017, Rahul’s second directorial venture, ‘Poorna’, won awards in Melbourne and Dublin. Rahul has lectured on leadership, gender justice and cinema at Harvard, Yale, Oxford, Cambridge and MIT, amongst others.Indian rugby's most famous face, Rahul represented India, playing 17 internationals (1998 - 2009). He is on the board of Rugby India. Rahul has founded two NGOs : The Foundation, dedicated to the equalisation development through education and HEAL, working to prevent child sexual abuse.

Miriam Chandy Menacherry is an award-winning Keralite documentary filmmaker and producer based in Mumbai, India. She has her own production house, Filament Pictures established in 2005, that produces socially relevant feature documentary films. She has been the recipient of national and international awards for her documentaries. She is currently working on a feature documentary about survivors of child sex trafficking fighting for justice titled `From the Shadows'. Her film Lyari Notes is the rare Indo-Pakistan co production on music and resistance that premiered at IDFA amsterdam where it was nominated for the alliance of women Film Journalists- EDA Award, the youth jury award at Sheffield and was the opening film at the Artists Cinema Package, Kochi Biennale.Her documentary, Rat Race (2011) was the winner of the Mipdoc Co-Production Challenge at Cannes (France). Miriam has also won the Asian Television Awards for Best Social Documentary (2007) and is one of 18 filmmakers selected for the Global Media Makers Program by film Independent and the US State Department. She is also working on an arts research project supported by the India Foundation for the Arts about the Women in Cinema collective in Kerala.

Udita Jhunjhunwala is an entertainment and lifestyle writer, film critic and author with over 20 years of journalistic experience. Formerly Entertainment Editor of Mid Day and newspapers, her critiques, interviews and feature articles now appear in leading publications including Vogue, Screen International, , Scroll, Firstpost, and AFP. A member of the Film Critics Guild, Udita was a contributing author to Women Indian Film (Zubaan books) and Bollywood’s Top 20 Stars (Penguin). She was also the film festival curator for the 2017 Kala Ghoda Arts Festival and the 10th Jagran Film Festival. .

Partner Information

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