Zeenat Aman says she’s disappointed that women don’t have wage parity in Bollywood, while sharing a BTS video of ‘Laila O Laila’ – WATCH – Times of India

Ever since Zeenat Aman has made her Instagram debut, the actress is constantly winning hearts and serving major inspiration. While she has shared some major throwback gems, the actress has also addressed several issues and dropped some words of wisdom.
Zeenat has now shared a behind-the-scenes video from the sets of ‘Qurbaani’ where she can be seen rehearsing for one of her most popular songs, ‘Laila O Laila’. She looks breath-takingly gorgeous in a white, high-slit dress with a silver head-gear and the actress revealed a journalist from Australia came to interview her. This footage is from that interview where she can be seen making an important point.

The actress said, “90 percent of the times, women here are playing ornamental roles. They sing and dance around the leading man. But now things are changing and women are demanding substantial roles which is great because women in India should have something to identify with, other than ornamentation.”

The veteran actress also addressed the issue of pay disparity in Bollywood. She revealed that she was the highest paid actress of her time and yet the difference between her pay cheque and that of the male actor was huge. She wrote, “In the late 70s, Keith Adam from the Australian Broadcasting Commission popped by the set of Qurbani, where I was rehearsing for ‘Laila o Laila’, and snagged himself an interview. It’s been nearly 50 years since this footage was shot, and the industry has changed immensely since. The roles available to women are clearly not just ornamental anymore. What hasn’t changed though is the gender pay gap. In my time I was lauded as the “highest paid female actor”, but the disparity in the pay cheque between my male co-stars and myself was so vast it was laughable.”

Zeenat is sad that the situation hasn’t really changed even today. She further added, “The Zeenat you see in this clip was quite certain that half a century would be enough time to even the scales. So it disappoints me that even today women in the film industry don’t have wage parity. Women have consistently put in the work, and I really think that the onus is now on our men – actors, directors, producers – to ensure that their female co-workers (not just stars) are paid fairly. It seems such a simple and obvious thing, and yet it would be revolutionary if any man actually did this. ????”

Netizens lauded Zeenat for this video and her caption. Many also called her ‘the OG’. Shweta Bachchan Nanda, commented on Zeenat’s post saying, “So well said and put!!! ♥️”

‘Qurbaani’ had released in 1980. It was directed by Feroz Khan who can also be seen in the video. It starred Zeenat along with Feroz, Vinod Khanna, Amjad Khan and Shakti Kapoor.