Tamannaah Bhatia Opens Up on South Cinema’s ‘Patriarchal Gaze’

Tamannaah Bhatia has sparked a fresh conversation about the portrayal of women in Indian cinema after sharing her views on what she described as a “patriarchal” gaze in parts of the South film industry and the different opportunities available to female actors in Bollywood.

Speaking in an interview with Forbes India, the actor reflected on her two-decade-long career across Hindi, Telugu and Tamil cinema, offering a candid assessment of how commercial filmmaking often shapes women’s roles and screen presence.

Discussing her experience in the South film industry, Tamannaah said she quickly became aware of a particular way female actors were viewed on screen.

“When I entered the south industry, I understood why people might call it many names. It’s a very specific gaze. It’s a patriarchal sort of vibe or it’s a gaze that’s not very complimenting,” she said, adding that these observations stem from her personal experience in commercial cinema.

The actor argued that mainstream South cinema often expects actresses to possess a combination of performance skills, glamour and star appeal to sustain long-term careers. She suggested that this expectation can be restrictive, especially for women seeking to balance artistic and commercial work.

By contrast, Tamannaah said Bollywood offers greater flexibility. According to her, actors in the Hindi film industry can choose between performance-oriented roles and glamorous commercial appearances, while those who successfully navigate both spaces often emerge as major stars.

Her comments also touched on the long-running debate around so-called “item songs.” Tamannaah rejected the label, saying she prefers to view such tracks as party songs that frequently outlive the films they are attached to.

Citing popular examples performed by Kareena Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, she said songs such as Chammak Challo, Sheila Ki Jawani and Kamli remain culturally relevant years later because audiences continue to celebrate them at weddings, parties and family gatherings.

“You might not remember those movies, but you will always remember those songs,” Tamannaah said, praising the performers for bringing grace, confidence and star power to their dance numbers.

The actor also revealed that dancing was not a formally trained skill for her but something she always enjoyed. She described glamour as an intrinsic part of her personality and said dance numbers allow her to express that side of herself creatively rather than treating it as something performed solely for the camera.

Tamannaah further highlighted the effort that goes into creating commercially successful songs. Reflecting on Aaj Ki Raat from Stree 2, she said she approached the performance through the lens of her character, Shama. She also discussed Ghafoor, a promotional track linked to The Ba***ds of Bollywood, describing it as glamorous but intentionally playful rather than overtly sensual.

“It’s borderline comical because ‘Ghafoor’ did not have sexy steps,” she said, explaining that the song relied more on mood and personality than conventional dance-number choreography.

Her remarks arrive at a time when conversations around the representation of women in mainstream cinema are receiving renewed attention. The debate intensified recently after the first glimpse of Peddi, starring Ram Charan and Janhvi Kapoor, faced criticism from some viewers over what they perceived as the hypersexualisation of Kapoor’s character. Following the backlash, certain scenes were reportedly edited, and director Buchi Babu Sana issued a public apology.

Tamannaah emphasized that her observations are not universal and may differ from the experiences of other actors. However, she maintained that many female stars who have enjoyed careers spanning a decade or more have often succeeded by balancing performance-driven roles with commercially appealing song-and-dance appearances.

One of the few actors to establish a significant presence across multiple film industries, Tamannaah has appeared in nearly 90 films and is known for projects including Baahubali, Oopiri and Aranmanai 4, along with OTT titles such as Jee Karda and Aakhiri Sach. She will next be seen opposite Sidharth Malhotra in Vvan: Force of the Forest.