Chennai: Women IPS officers come out against ‘demeaning’ film dialogues

Three women IPS officers from Tamil Nadu have voiced concern over portrayal of women in a 'demeaning' manner in cinema and said this was a major factor in rising crimes against the fairer sex.

The three women officers spoke to online portal, The Covai Post, and the video had gone viral. The officers — R. V. Ramyabharathi, superintendent of police, Coimbatore, S. Lakshmi, deputy commissioner of police (DCP), Coimbatore city, and Disha Mittal, DCP, Tiruppur city — urged the entertainment sector to "restrain from glorifying demeaning and insulting dialogues and lyrics". Ramyabharathy said film lyrics and dialogue have a "devastating impact on young minds. Everyday, police received, on an average, a dozen complaints of misbehaviour, assault and stalking against women, while many go unreported, she said.

Lakshmi said that cinema is a powerful media as it creates a big impact among the people, especially among the youth. "That being the case a powerful media should be used carefully," she said. She said there were lyrics in cinema songs "which instigate violence against women," and asked the lyricists penning them, actors featuring in them and directors to have "some social concern."

Disha said the entertainment industry played a 'major role' in daily life. She had come across incidents where the delinquents "have been almost instigated, inspired by certain movie plots, dialogues and lewd songs," she noted. "As an IPS officer it is my honest request to the entertainment industry to be more responsible.”