Bollywood is reinventing itself by making stories that talk about real, bigger issues in life and the trailer of Thappad is proof. I say ‘reinventing’ because, in an age where 3-minute long songs are remakes of the old ones, a story like Thappad feels like a breath of fresh air.
After a productive 2019 with four new movies, Taapsee Pannu is back with a film based on domestic abuse in India. “So just one slap then?” is a myth that the movie is busting by bringing to surface the lifetime trauma and humiliation that follows a victim of domestic violence. Taapsee plays a married woman who goes to court seeking a divorce from her husband after he slaps her in front of a party. “Just a slap… par nahi maar sakta,” is what the film revolves around and we couldn’t agree more!
Speaking about the film, Taapsee said in an interview, “It has a thought-provoking storyline and deals with a subject which must be addressed in our society. To put it in perspective, looking at what we aim to convey with our film, I can say Thappad is this year’s Pink.” She also said that when the film was offered to her, she instantly knew she had to do it.
Before I share my and my colleagues’ thoughts on the just-released trailer of the film, watch it for yourself.
Thoughts We Had While Watching The Trailer Of ‘Thappad’
1. At a time when movies like Kabir Singh become blockbusters, when its director casually says ‘If you can’t slap, touch your woman wherever you want, I don’t see emotion’, a movie like Thappad is much needed. Despite living in a relatively ‘progressive’ society, women are expected to ‘tolerate’ and ‘adjust’ bad behaviour by men, and I really hope that this movie brings to light this sensitive topic.
– Tanya Sharma, Junior Editor
2. In the trailer, Taapsee Pannu says that it’s not ‘just’ a slap and I agree. One CANNOT justify anything that happens ‘in the heat of the moment’. It’s more about what you are willing to tolerate. Unfortunately, in a ‘tolerant’ country like India where we are ready to accept anything and everything, especially when it comes to women, I think that a movie like Thappad was much needed to enable people to think about the other perspective as well.
– Neha Kapoor, Senior Writer
3. I was hooked to the trailer from the very beginning. And I absolutely love the fact that the woman is taking control back, not submitting to the man’s mercurial mood swings and glaring anger management issues just because she loves him and believes in happily-ever-after. The trailer tells you everything that most women in India are fed: it’s okay for a man to bash up a sensible, smart, sexy, self-respecting woman. Even one small instance of physical abuse in a marriage or a relationship is a big enough reason to end it.
– Ekta Alreja, Deputy Editor
4. The trailer for the much-awaited Taapsee starrer Thappad dropped a couple of hours ago and it’s already a hit for me! Having been in an abusive relationship in the past, I can 100% relate to when Taapsee says it’s not just a slap! The trailer beautifully captures how one abusive act/moment can change your life drastically for you and the people around you. Abuse against women is a common occurrence in our country and a lot of women are scared to raise their voices. But not anymore. I hope this embarks a positive change and men, for once, realise that their actions do leave a scar behind.
– Aayushi Pareek, Writer
5. I have to agree that the Thappad trailer is extremely gripping and addresses an issue which most women probably forget after a few hours of it happening. Physical abuse in a relationship/marriage is a reality that is often ignored. Most people think a slap, a thappad, is no big deal… People lose control and that’s deemed ‘normal’. I really hope that this movie drills some sense into men, families and even women who normalise such behaviour. Moreover, I wish to see my very own friends and acquaintances who been through such instances to finally speak up and not shove the marks of physical abuse under layers of makeup.
– Manasvi Jaitly, Assistant Editor
6. The thing with our country is that while we feel like we’re moving forward in some ways, there are so many regressive ideas that still plague our minds – domestic abuse, violence against women and marital rape are just a few of these. If it’s one slap, if it’s rape, if it’s a series of violent acts, at the end of the day, it is a need for control over women. People need to be held accountable for their actions and women need to understand that it cannot be tolerated. It’s very important that films that focus on these nuanced issues are coming to the forefront. And I laud Taapsee and the makers for this effort.
– Anandita Malhotra, Senior Writer
7. After watching the trailer of Thappad, I was really happy to see that Indian filmmakers are finally trying to make a (positive) difference to society. I love how well they’ve captured the typical Indian mindset of ‘sab chalta hai‘. In a marriage or in a relationship, more often than not, those closest to us have encouraged us to look the other way. At some point, we have all been victims of this regressive, patriarchal culture. The trailer delivers a very powerful, hard-hitting message. I hope it inspires women all over the country to be the strong, independent women we were raised to be and take a stand for themselves.
– Nidhi Kavle, Assistant Editor
According to UN Women (2017), the proportion of ever-married women aged 15-49 years experiencing intimate partner physical and/or sexual violence at least once in their lifetime is 28.8%. Heck, marital rape is still legal in India! The fact that even families normalise this or any form of abuse saying ‘Yeh toh chalta rehta hai, beta‘ is worse. First, you get beaten up then you get called out for seeking support–legal or emotional. That’s progressive!
Directed by Anubhav Sinha, who also made Mulk and Article 15, Thappad is set to release on February 28, 2020. The film also features Pavail Gulati, Dia Mirza, Ratna Pathak, Tanvi Azmi and Ram Kapoor in pivotal roles. A film like this finally addresses that submitting to toxic masculinity is not okay and victimhood should never become a warm space.
Featured Image: YouTube
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