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When Love Needs Women to be Fragile | EP 22 | Dear Body
22 Plays27 days ago
Pakistani cinema often presents love through the male gaze—where women are written as fragile, childlike, and in need of protection, while male persistence is framed as romance.
In this episode of Dear Body, I analyze Neelofar as a case study to explore female representation in Pakistani films, the infantilization of women, and how cinema shapes ideas of desire, consent, and power. This episode connects body politics, gender studies, and media criticism to ask a larger question: what kind of love stories are we being taught to accept?
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Transcript
Cinema and Cultural Influence
00:00:05
Speaker
Had my uncle not insisted on watching a movie at the cinema, emphasizing how he loved watching Mayra Khan on screen, I might not be having this conversation with you. This is not going to be another Nilofar movie review. In fact, this is broader and much larger context in which we will be pointing out how cinema in Pakistan operates on the same lens that Hollywood and Bollywood has over the years. Why?
00:00:30
Speaker
You will understand that very
Narrative of 'Niloufar'
00:00:32
Speaker
soon. Very briefly, I'm going to share what happens in the movie without giving any possible spoilers. Niloufar is a visually impaired girl who crosses paths with the notable Urdu writer Mansoor Ali Khan when he mistakenly bumps into her at the eye clinic. There begins the saga of Mansoor falling head over heels in love with her, wanting to win this
Character Analysis: Neelofar
00:00:53
Speaker
girl over. The more screen time Neelofar received, the more I began to question other things, this time regarding her personality. Towards the end of the movie, I contemplated calling it a love story. It scared me thinking how many individuals, especially Naujavaan Nasal, cinema hall or movie thought that this is the love.
00:01:13
Speaker
So is exactly what I have given me for two hours of my life? While I was watching the movie, it was very clear to me that Neelofar was not given the position that she deserved considering the title of the movie was Neelofar. Visek as a complex character can be seen with her traumas and complexities but as the protagonist of the movie, Neelofar, I feel she should have been given stronger positioning. But by the end of the film and the time that we thought about the time, the way each character was presented, I couldn't help but notice how Nilofer was displayed on screen.
The Male Gaze in Cinema
00:01:49
Speaker
To understand all of this, it is very necessary to understand cinema. Our Rasool has directed this movie, meaning it's made from a male director's lens. I heard a term during one of our classes, male gaze. And it completely changed the way I look at cinema and our entertainment industry, television. This term basically commonly used amongst feminists, which argues that what a female can be given to a role so that the male spectator, the audience, whoever is viewing the female, for sexual objectification. Basically, this term male gaze originally was introduced by Laura Malvi in her essay, which is called Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema. And at that time, the term's meaning relates to the woman as the spectacle in film. Other feminists also used this term in print, in film, in multimedia as being a product of the male gaze. Male gaze's example is that when we control the power of cinema and use it for good, we understand what is male gaze.
00:02:56
Speaker
Male gaze's stereotypical portrayal hair of men and women on the big screen, which appeals to the desires and ambitions and to the unrealistic and often baseless expectations. kissat This is se or tooki sexualization or objectification hati himm movies joha or toki unrolls me ungotikaya chatta he own positions made the positions in which women want to see.
00:03:24
Speaker
Also male gaze is in the desires and preferences which align with straight men. Mail case کے effects, the effects are always superficial and not yet. If we look directly observe this expectation, we should be low if we look at the film are the influence of male audience.
Patriarchal Influence on Female Roles
00:03:57
Speaker
Because this industry will cater to male viewers' needs. Like female audience doesn't exist. You will think that the drama is very much more. Including our morning shows, our television series. But if you look at this one another lens, a very close lens, these dramas are this kind of thought manufacture. Where the needs desires, preferences and their their needs of their desires are secondary.
00:04:31
Speaker
A woman can mold her own relationship with her husband or her husband with her husband. This all can shown. This can be shown that her role is limited. She can be shown in the victim role. She can be shown in the victim role. She can be shown in the victim role. She can be shown the victim role. She can be in the victim role. She can be shown in the victim role. She can be shown in the victim role. She can shown in the victim role. She can be shown in victim role. the beginning, they should show hesitation, but these are very common tropes that in the drama industry and our film industry. Those who have seen the movie, they have the idea that Nilofer was displayed as this woman who wears a shalwar kameez throughout the course of the film. She has a shawl draped around her arms. She leaves her hair open. However, she wears a headband which dramatically disappears towards the last scene of the movie. Now, what is the significance of this headband? In every movie, there are symbols which we also call Easter eggs. Where some hints drop, you have to pick on those hints.
00:05:35
Speaker
You interpret them. And that is the beauty of cinema. Sometimes these cinematic representations take a very harmful representation. This sets certain standards which can make a society more dangerous for vulnerable people, especially women and children. Considering Niloufer initially displayed as a romantic drama film, where two people's love stories can be seen, the presence of Niloufer's headband suggests that she an innocent figure, she has a childlike personality, hair she does not know any better.
00:06:08
Speaker
She is someone one who is waiting for her saviour, her knight in shining armour. Someone who is going to make her incomplete life complete. Now you must be thinking, how can a headband suggest so many things? It was quite clear to me the moment Nilo first started gaining more and more screen presence and started to have these conversations with Mansoor, the more they went on these dates, the more I realised there childlike presence within her personality. which is prominent in the way she giggles, or in which she has shown in front of Mansoor. Why is the portrait done so much? And why is the majority not questioning it? Because our society largely patriarchal and male-dominated. And as unfortunate as it is, this is a long time. If watch our Punjabi films, which were widely popular in a while, I was surprised that in which women can be presented in a limited role. Particularly the song sequences. In which women have been objectification because our spectators have the demand for this. They are extremely different and they are only catering to male viewership. In our cinema, I want to make a separate conversation. If you want to decode Punjab cinema, we can make a whole long-term gaze. So you can let me know.
00:07:38
Speaker
Coming back to the conversation, which we were doing on male examples of male gaze.
Impact of Objectification and Beauty Standards
00:07:46
Speaker
which drama in our society is controlled by our society. The most important, visible and notable effect is sexualization.
00:08:00
Speaker
If you think about drama in which you will see very prominently, and observe that which drama The movies are made for male gaze.
00:08:19
Speaker
They are shown as objects of sexual pleasure and desires. They are synonymous whathihe with sexualization and objectification. These two can exist without existing. So, they can go together. If we can see the movies, we can observe that the camera focused on physical features. per focus krtahi Female characters game your female character screen. characters comes to screen, the audience emphasizes its emphasized curtia
00:08:50
Speaker
Her hair, her body, her eyes, can be seen zoom in. If she crying, what does it emphasize in her eyes? Why is she crying?
00:09:01
Speaker
She can see it in this position. Which is very subordinate position. uir If it's a bodily features, per focus kiyajare for example, in a movie, then what kind of camera angles is female character's body's perfection? coempphasize kare u them Hindsight may be so helpful, but if you look carefully, you have to understand what people think of this.
00:09:27
Speaker
That is why a woman can be rewarded for of her physical appearance and all of a sudden, her personality, her nature and other traits are behind the mask of her physical appearance.
00:09:47
Speaker
So, one thing that visible on the point is its beauty. We all know that this is why it is said that because the audience and filmmakers are easily ignored, most of them, and they go further.
00:10:03
Speaker
Movie ki am baat kere in the very first scene, the moment Neelofar and Mansoor interact, she has this fiery personality, she has a very dominating presence where she stands her ground, she speaks her mind but that only happens at the first two scenes.
00:10:19
Speaker
Uske baat, everything changes dramatically. She becomes this preteen who is shy, she giggles around Mansoor, she has lost all sense of moral sensibility or thinking To the point that she does not realize that rationally, looking at this relationship, Mansoor did not leave her alone. Like a stalker, he was back until she said yes to him. Mansoor persisted
00:10:52
Speaker
And then these two things are very important to realize that when you declare a romantic tale, two individuals, then you have a responsibility to come. Because our youth has interest in cinema. Considering that Fawad Khan and Mahira have such a prominent presence, not just in cinema but in the Pakistani drama industry, which is not just national but global in nature. So ultimately youth, men start to believe that this is how they need to woo women. Women start to believe that this is how they need to act around men by showcasing that they are not taking interest in the beginning. Then slowly and gradually they cave into their demands. But the male gaze fails to acknowledge this.
00:11:42
Speaker
her movie her drama fuoscarte or toki physical treats buthuusu desirable benateti yela's desirable bot subjective or misleading via but the male gaze fails to acknowledge this Like I said before, women are led to believe that their beauty is the only desirable characteristic. The matter gets even worse when the standards of the so-called beauty are laid down by a few male filmmakers who have the most narrowest vision and the most outdated mindset. These standards are not just hard to achieve, they are in fact unachievable or unrealistic. It is very physically, mentally, emotionally, every level impossible to accept the fact that almost 99% the women must look like the way women are shown on the big screen. Not everyone is born with a perfectly clear skin, a surprisingly thin body structure or perfect hair. We never see movies where lead female actress is flaunt her natural skin with acne and scars. We have seen a few instances but it hasn't been so much highlight. We don't watch such movies where they are young. This is what leads women to think that if they have their natural features, they're not beautiful. These beauty standards are very toxic and they harm the viewers for a really long period of time. People teach that they are supposed to look a certain way and this is certain way they need to see. And this certain way is often unachievable, very unrealistic and unsurprisingly, many people fail meet these standards. This failure causes them to think less of themselves. That's why body image issues are increasing. Young girls are shown models and actresses whose perfect figure is skin tone, hair and they made to believe that this is what makes them desirable. They their best, meet their standards, compromise their mental health as a result. From this failure, the depression, the anxiety, the insecurity that is born is very concerning. It kills the self-respect and confidence of many women all
The Female Gaze as a Counterpart
00:13:49
Speaker
around the globe. Female gaze is feminist theory which refers to the gaze of the female spectator. It is more of gender or more than one issue of representing women as subjects whose agency
00:14:04
Speaker
As such, people of any gender, they can make films with the female gaze. This is response to the feminist film theorist Laura Malvi's term male gaze which represents the gaze of the heterosexual male viewer, but the feishism or voyeism kand male article. kanderhi onon just filmco de carta justki basissis poonee like analysis bananaha both he alfred heshhockey film nineteen fifty four miiti
00:14:43
Speaker
Rare Window, which they discussed the the depiction ohi coffeefi inadeicquque huto film female gaze harla ke johe with three viewpoints could take thejo individual film carre ho to character whose film cander hair or joe spectator in three viewpoints kibesis page joki malvique male gaze female gaze, films, female
00:15:37
Speaker
If you watch our movies or TV shows, school they came particularly dramas like The Dham, movies, such as The Dughter, there are some examples of such films and dramas where the narrative of the desires the movie is a good one. In our Pakistani drama industry, both of them are prominent female and male writers, whose influence is on our audience, cup perre including myself.
Role of Gender in Storytelling
00:16:04
Speaker
This why you establish work that is very important. In the Pakistani context of male writer, As result
00:16:14
Speaker
aur is co-direct kajai by a male individual toski production johugiskarizal whoao male ge ski perspective samil ra huga k a male director k azeri sijo male protagonist dominate karraywski story co society co on kikaris school agi lekijare woke is the heartak representation who hair of the female as a result when female writer is presented to a female director, when a female writer is presented to a female director, when you see this screen, it will be a female in your society. this result is very different.
00:16:53
Speaker
toscarri albo ala cuka Next time, if you to
00:17:16
Speaker
observe karinki kisstahai is director nis kure yeki writer kalika gara here alpiious protagonist nikither hassis storyico agi lakekajare k story agilikijare op up north ki jiga kikina vae for aute jabi male or female perspectives say drama ya film co agi lijayajata i'm your host surush and you were listening to dear