Watch the top women-oriented movies to celebrate the day of women. Happy International Women’s Day to all the beautiful ladies out there.
Times are gone when the films had to depend on the male stars to smash the box office. A lot has changed in the filmland, from being a male-dominated industry to sharing space with female protagonists carrying off an entire movie on her shoulders.
Now audience demands more authentic, raw and real stories led by powerful female characters. Hereby, we proffer a list of the best women-centric films that broke new grounds in the film industry.
Top 10 Films Portraying Strong Female Characters
Here is a list of the top 10 women-oriented films of the decade to celebrate International Women’s Day.
1. Kahaani
Release: 2012
Director: Sujoy Ghosh
Cast: Vidya Balan, Arjun Rampal, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Indraneil Sengupta
Vidya Balan plays the central character, Vidya Bagchi, a pregnant woman who travels to Kolkata in search of her missing husband. Directed by Sujoy Ghosh, the film was highly appreciated for the strong storyline, amazing cinematography and direction. The film explores motherhood and feminism in a male-dominated Indian society. It even bagged three National Film Awards.
2. English Vinglish
Release: 2012
Director: Gauri Shinde
Cast: Sridevi, Adil Hussain, Navika Kotia, Priya Anand and Shivansh Kotia
After a long halt of 15 years, veteran actor Sridevi made a grand come back with Gauri Sinde’s English Vinglish. The actress portrayed the character of Sashi, a small entrepreneur who makes snacks but could hardly speak in English while she lived in an English-speaking country with her family. However, she gets herself enrolled in an English-speaking course to gain self-respect and recognition from her family.
3. Mary Kom
Release: 2014
Director: Omung Kumar
Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Darshan Kumar, Shishir Sharma, Sunil Thapa
The film chronicles the journey of boxing champion Mary Kom. Priyanka Chopra portrays the character of the Indian boxer who won India great accolades internationally. The biopic depicts the hardships faced by the Indian boxer in her career and a grand comeback after a few years post her marriage and children. The film showcases the successful journey of Mary Kom against all odds throughout her journey.
4. Queen
Release: 2014
Director: Vikas Bahl
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Rajkummar Rao and Lisa Haydon
Queen revolves around the life of an innocent girl Rani, played by Kangana Ranaut. However, her heart breaks when her fiance Vijay calls off the marriage. The simple small-town girl is shattered and decides to go on a honeymoon alone to Paris. During her trip, she makes new friends, explores new places and comes back as a more confident person. In the end, Rani gets strong enough to live her life on her own terms.
5. Pink
Release: 2016
Director: Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari, Andrea Tariang and Angad Bedi
The film revolves around three friends who were molested by a spoilt brat of an influential family. Amitabh Bachchan plays the character of the advocate of the women who filed an FIR against the men. The film showcases no matter what clothes a girl wears or what lifestyle she leads, she can’t be forced into doing anything against her will.
6. Lipstick Under My Burkha
Release: 2016
Director: Alankrita Shrivastava
Cast: Ratna Pathak, Konkana Sen Sharma, Plabita Borthakur, Aahana Kumra
The fearless feminist film holds the mirror to the present time we live in. The women in the film are simultaneously repressed and liberated. They fight within their bounds and try to extend the boundary line by an inch every day. As all of their secrets are revealed to their families in the last act, they are shamed and ostracized from their families. However, they come together in rebellion and seemingly laugh off the prejudices to begin a new revolt on the next day.
7. Tumhari Sulu
Release: 2017
Director: Suresh Triveni
Cast: Vidya Balan, Manav Kaul, Neha Dhupia and Vijay Maurya
Sulochana aka Sulu, an ambitious housewife, decides to become independent as she gets a job as a radio jockey for a night show. However, her flourishing career hits a roadblock when her faceless stardom is seen as a reason for her domestic life to go awry and a means to neglect her role as a parent.
8. Thappad
Release: 2020
Director: Anubhav Sinha
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Pavail Gulati, Ratna Pathak, Tanvi Azmi and Dia Mirza
Thappad is an impactful social drama that questions the unspoken rules of marriage. Amrita and her husband lead a simple and happy life. However, her life shatters when her husband slaps her in front of the guests at a house party which leads her to file a divorce case. Amrita is fiesty and resolves to channel the inner fighter in her and stands up for what she truly believes in that even one slap is outrageous and not okay.
9. Mimi
Release: 2021
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Kriti Sanon, Evelyn Edwards, Pankaj Tripathi, Sai Tamhankar, Manoj Pahwa, Supriya Pathak
Starring Kriti Sanon in the lead role, the film talks about surrogacy. The movie revolves around a woman named Mimi, who aspires to become an actress but doesn’t have money to fulfil her dreams. Meanwhile, a foreign couple is in search of a surrogate mother and Mimi agrees to become so in order to make money. However, the couple abandons the child in her womb owing to some disability pointed out by the doctor.
10. Thalaivi
Release: 2021
Director: AL Vijay
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Arvind Swamy, Nassar, Bhagyashree and Samuthirakani
The story is inspired by the life of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa. The film depicts the journey of the great leader where Kangana Ranaut portrays the character of the former CM Jayalalithaa. Many remember Thalaivi as a great leader, but the story entails her early career in the movies, theatres and dance in a detailed manner.
The film chronicles the challenges faced by Jayalalithaa from being an actress to serving the needy and becoming the greatest leader of all times.
The past ten years have had some truly strong women-centric films with many being a total game-changer.