Since ages, the film industries have been given us several women-oriented films. Last year itself, we saw Dangal With feminism and women empowerment a hot topic worldwide, Hindi cinema is not far behind in promoting such topics.So, here’s a list of some iconic films that celebrate the power and true expressions of women.
Mother India (1957)
Mother India is an epic drama film, directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar, and Raaj Kumar.It is the story of a poverty-stricken village woman named Radha (Nargis) who, in the absence of her husband, struggles to raise her sons and survive against a cunning money-lender amidst many troubles. Despite her hardship, she sets a goddess-like moral example of an ideal Indian woman.
Damini (1993)
Damini is a crime thriller film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi starring Meenakshi Sheshadri in the title role alongside Sunny Deol, Rishi Kapoor, Amrish Puri, Tinu Anand.The story is of how a woman fights against society for justice aginst rape. The film is considered to be one of the best woman centric films ever made in Bollywood.
Chandni Bar(2001)
Chandni Bar is a Hindi film directed by Madhur Bhandarkar. It depicts the gritty life of the Mumbai underworld, including prostitution, dance bars and gun crime. The film stars Tabu and Atul Kulkarni in lead roles. It also stars Ananya Khare, Rajpal Yadav, Minakshi Sahani and Vishal Thakkar. The film was a critically acclaimed hit and it won four National Film Awards.
Lajja (2001)
Lajja is a Hindi drama film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi. The film is based on the plight of women in India. The movie recounts the story of four women, and features an all-star cast including Manisha Koirala, Rekha, Madhuri Dixit, Jackie Shroff, Johnny Lever, Anil Kapoor, Ajay Devgan and Danny Denzongpa. The divas Urmila Matondkar and Sonali Bendre perform item numbers.Samir Soni and Mahima Chaudhry are also starring.
The movie satirises the honour with which women are placed in society and the restrictions on them. The fact that the four women`s names (Maithili, Janki, Ramdulaari, and Vaidehi) are all versions of Sita, the ideal Hindu woman`s name, is a message in itself. Manisha Koirala is the protagonist of this film.
Dor(2006)
Dor is an Indian drama film written and directed by Nagesh Kukunoor that features Ayesha Takia, Gul Panag and Shreyas Talpade as the lead actors. The story is about two women who come from different backgrounds and how fate brings them together. Meera (Ayesha Takia), a young woman who becomes a widow shortly after marriage, is trapped by tradition. Zeenat (Gul Panag), on the other hand, faces the daunting task of saving the life of her husband, who is on trial for murder. A bahuroopiya (Shreyas Talpade) helps her reach Meera, who holds the string to Zeenat`s hope. The companionship that develops between Meera and Zeenat results in redemption for both.
No One Killed Jessica (2011)
No One Killed Jessica is a Indian biographical thriller film starring Rani Mukerji and Vidya Balan, produced by UTV Spotboy and directed by Rajkumar Gupta. This film is based on the Jessica Lal murder case.
The character of Jessica’s older sister, Sabrina Lal, is played by Vidya Balan, and the character of the news reporter following the story is played by Rani Mukerji.
Kahaani (2012)
Kahaani is an Indian Hindi-language mystery thriller film co-written, co-produced and directed by Sujoy Ghosh. It stars Vidya Balan as Vidya Bagchi, a pregnant woman searching for her missing husband in Kolkata during the festival of Durga Puja, assisted by Satyoki Rana Sinha (Parambrata Chatterjee) and Khan (Nawazuddin Siddiqui).
Gulab Gang (2014)
Gulab Gang is Indian crime drama film centered on the struggle of women in the country, directed by Soumik Sen and produced by Anubhav Sinha. It stars Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla. The Gulaab Gang members are activists and vigilantes in Bundelkhand Uttar and Madhya Pradesh. They wear pink sarees and take up issues like domestic violence, the dowry system, rape, electricity matters, and education. Their fierce leader, Rajjo (Madhuri Dixit), locks horns with a conniving and shrewd politician, Sumitra Bagrecha (Juhi Chawla), who uses people.
Mardaani (2014)
Mardaani is a Indian crime thriller film that deals with the problem of human-trafficking in India, directed by Pradeep Sarkar and produced by Aditya Chopra. The film stars Rani Mukerji in the lead role, with Jisshu Sengupta and Tahir Raj Bhasin appearing in supporting roles.
The film tells the story of a policewoman whose interest in the case of a kidnapped teenage girl leads her to uncover secrets of human trafficking by the Indian mafia.
Queen (2014)
Queen is a Indian comedy-drama film directed by Vikas Bahl and produced by Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, and Madhu Mantena. The film stars Kangana Ranaut in the lead role, with Lisa Haydon and Rajkummar Rao playing supporting roles.Rani, an under-confident Punjabi girl from New Delhi embarks on her honeymoon to Paris and Amsterdam by herself after her fiancé calls off their wedding.
Neerja (2016)
Neerja is an Indian Hindi-language biographical thriller film directed by Ram Madhvani and written by Saiwyn Quadras and Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh.It was produced by Atul Kasbekar`s company, Bling Unplugged, alongside Vijay Singh`s Fox Star Studios. The film features Sonam Kapoor as the title character, with Shabana Azmi, Yogendra Tiku and Shekhar Ravjiani in supporting roles.
Sarabjit (2016)
Sarbjit is an Indian biographical drama film directed by Omung Kumar. The film features Aishwarya Rai as Dalbir Kaur and Randeep Hooda portrays the title role Sarabjit Singh, an Indian man who was sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 1991 and who consequently spent 22 years in prison for alleged terrorism.
Dangal (2016)
Dangal is a 2016 Indian Hindi-language biographical sports drama film directed by Nitesh Tiwari. It stars Aamir Khan as Mahavir Singh Phogat, who taught wrestling to his daughters Geeta Phogat and Babita Kumari.The former is India`s first female wrestler to win at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, where she won the gold medal (55 kg). Her sister Babita Kumari won the silver (51 kg).
Akira (2016)
Akira is a 2016 Indian action drama film co-written, directed, and produced by AR Murugadoss.Akira, a self-reliant girl, moves to Mumbai from a small town and joins a college. She unwittingly becomes a target of four corrupt police officers and fights to prove her innocence.