Bollywood's sex workers
From the pathos of Waheeda Rahman in 'Pyaasa' to the mystic of Rekha in'Umrao Jaan' and now the boldness of Neha Dhupia in 'Julie', theportrayal of sex-workers in B'wood has undergone numerous changes.Let's have a look at some of the actresses who come on calling 'ChalnaHai Kya!'.
Kareena Kapoor in 'Chameli': Inthe movie Kareena Kapoor plays the role of a sex wroker and states thatshe was 'deflowered' before she reached teenage. She talks of an uncle,who shoved her into the flesh trade. Reel-prostitute Bebo touches thereality with her acting skills in the movie.
Rani Mukherjee in 'Laaga Chunari Mein Daag: Themovie dealt with one conservative relatively poor family and talkedmainly about the eldest girl who took up the responsibility ofprotecting and supporting her family financially. 'Badki' played byRani Mukherjee is forced to take up the job of an 'escort' to supporther family in the movie.
Kalki Koechlin in 'Dev D': KalkiKoechlin who made her debut with Anurag Kashyap's 'Dev D' played thecharacter of 'Chanda' in the movie. In the movie, Kalki played the roleof a young girl from Delhi who gets into prostitution. The film showed,what influences such young girls to take the wrong plunge.
Madhuri Dixit in 'Devdas': Madhurias 'Chandramukhi' in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Devdas' remake, conveyedabout as much sexuality as a health-food biscuit. She was just amazingas a kotha woman, doing mujras for Shah Rukh Khan in the film
Tabu in 'Chandani Bar':In Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Chandni Bar', Tabu was the victim. She wasraped by a bag of bones and became the stubble. Ultimately she wasdriven to the trade by her fate. Tabu successfully brought in noticethe plight of women through her actingRekha in 'Umrao Jaan': 'UmraoJaan' showed Rekha at her sensual best. She portrayed the charachter ofa sex worker with elan and her performance in the movie is one of thebest till date. Perhaps, Rekha is the model 'kotha' woman of mainstreamHindi movies
Manisha Koirala in 'Market':In Jai Prakash's 'Market', Manisha played an under-age Hyderabadi girl,who was sold to a sheikh. Ultimately the destiny-driven girl becomesthe hot stuff of so-called flesh abyss. In the movie, Manisha managedto evoke viewer's sympathy and concern through her acting.Namrata Shirodkar in 'Vaastav':In Mahesh Manjrekar's 'Vaastav', Namrata Shirodkar played vastlyunderrated performance. A brittle act in which she taunts don SanjayDutt to get on with what he is expected to at a brothel. Though theactress had a short role in the movie but still Namrata managed to keepthe limelight on her with her critical performance.