Two months into 2025, and Bollywood has yet to produce a film that passes the Bechdel test.
But what is the Bechdel test?
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It is a measure of women’s representation in film. To pass, a film must have at least two women in it, who talk to each other about something other than a man.
While there is a deeper understanding of it, this is the simplest way of defining it.
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If a film passes the test, it indicates a stronger female presence in its narrative.
Sounds pretty easy to achieve, right? Apparently, not so much.
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2024 was a year that saw a rise in women’s representation in cinema.
While there were still discussions about love and men, female leads also underwent significant self-exploration.
Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies explored the themes of love but also self-discovery. Several moments in the film passed the Bechdel test, such as Phool’s conversation with Manju Maai or Jaya’s interactions with the women in Deepak’s family.
Cannes Grand Prix winner All We Imagine as Light delved into female friendships and love. Conversations between Prabha, Anu, and Parvathy all passed the test.
Girls Will Be Girls, despite being a love story, explored female sexuality and self-discovery, also passing the test.
After such powerful films, it’s disappointing that, two months into 2025, we haven’t seen a single film with strong female leads.
The recently released Chhaava, though widely loved, barely even meets the test’s criteria as it hardly features any meaningful conversations between women.
Loveyapa, Deva, and Sky Force among others also fail.
Surprisingly, Pushpa 2, which lauded Allu Arjun’s feminist portrayal by draping a saree to fight, also did not pass the test.
While passing the Bechdel test doesn’t necessarily make a film feminist, its failure speaks volumes about the representation of women in cinema. Hopefully, the coming months will bring a positive shift in storytelling.
