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Deepika Padukone was all over the news when she stepped out of Prabhas’ Spirit. Among the many reasons for her exit was the actor’s disappointment in filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga for not agreeing to 8-hour shift request, as she is mother to a young child. While many spoke in the support of the actress and the need for regulating shift timings for working mothers in the industry, now the first woman president of Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), Shwetha Menon, has spoke about the same.
At an India Today event, Shwetha urged the industry to create a more supportive and communicative environment for women artistes, highlighting that voicing one’s needs are important. She said: “Most issues can be solved through dialogue, but people often avoid it. Even when I was AMMA’s first female vice-president, I would urge women to share their problems but none of them would. I won’t blame them. Everyone is worried about their careers. But slowly, we will bring these issues to light.”
She recalled her own experience of working during her pregnancy. “I did four films while pregnant. I informed my directors that I wasn’t comfortable with early morning shoots, and they understood.”
Much before embracing motherhood, Deepika Padukone had voiced for finding work-life balance. Speaking to Film Companion, the actor shared it was during her struggle with depression when she understood the value of work-life balance.
“Somehow, in our country, including the corporate world, taking leaves or wanting time for yourself carries a connotation of being unprofessional, not hardworking or driven enough. And I disagree. You can be all of those things and still make time for yourself. How are you going to replenish and put energy back into your work if you don’t?”
She added: “Streamlining the hours that we work, especially for the crew. There is this sense that if you make people work extra and continuously, you get it done faster. My thinking is the exact opposite — people need to be given enough downtime and rest so that they come back with better energy. That’ll help you work faster and better the quality of your work too.”
Meanwhile, several other actors believe that acting cannot be put into shifts and templates. Previously, speaking to Pinkvilla, actor Adivi Sesh shared: “There is no rule per se. Some schedules are for 12 hours, some are for 18. We are oversimplifying it we are saying that we need an 8 hour shift. Acting is not a 9-5 job. It is entirely based on the agreement made between the filmmaker and actor. The demand will practically not work if they have lots to shoot, and the budget is less, they can’t increase the number of days. So these things need to be agreed upon before, motherhood or otherwise.”
Bollywood actor Ali Fazal, who is also a producer, had something similar to share. Speaking to SCREEN, the actor said: “I am pro everybody being satisfied. At the end of the day, we are creators. This is not like a corporate job. No offence to them, but it is not. Creating things takes a lot of compassion. It needs to be mutually decided between actors, creators and technicians, ‘What is the displacement of the hours in that particular project.”
He added: “Sometimes, some projects don’t require much because it is VFX-heavy. Some projects require more because it is action, and drama. The genre changes the working style. That’s the kind of industry we are in. You can’t put a template. This is all subjective. This is not for others to discuss and throw their opinions. It is harsh asking people to take sides. It is not fair.”
Meanwhile, Deepika Padukone who recently celebrated the first birthday of her daughter Dua on September 8, was last seen in the film Singham Again (2024). The film released a month after the birth of her daughter.
The actress is currently shooting for Shah Rukh Khan-starrer King. However, there has been no update over the same. Apart from King, Deepika is likely to return in the sequel of Kalki. Apart from these, she is yet to announce new projects.
After last month’s AMMA election, actors Shwetha Menon and Kukku Parameswaran were elected as the first woman president and general secretary of the association.
Shwetha Menon made history by becoming the first woman president of AMMA since its inception in 1994. The elections were held last month where out of 504 members, only 298 voted. Speaking about her win, Shwetha told OnManorama, “I am feeling very happy about this win. I still need the support of Mohanlal, Mammootty, and Suresh Gopi as thy are the patron.”
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