'Wrong Portrayal of Tawaifs Damages Women's History': A Kathak Dancer Speaks Out
'Wrong Portrayal of Tawaifs Damages Women's History': A Kathak Dancer Speaks Out
From Pakeezah to Heeramandi, Manjari Chaturvedi discusses the representation of tawaifs in Bollywood and its impact.
By: VRINDA ARORA
“When we don’t see the real aspects of tawaif culture, it leads to an incorrect representation of those women.”
— Manjari Chaturvedi, Indian Kathak Dancer
It’s been more than 20 days since Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi was released. This Netflix original series of eight episodes has been the talk of the town, not just about the extravagant costumes or grand settings but also about its inaccuracies and factual errors around the tawaif culture and representation.
For the last 15 years, Manjari Chaturvedi, an Indian Kathak dancer from Lucknow gharana has been working on the stories of tawaifs, about their dance, music, and performance art, under her project called The Courtesan Project.
"Heeramandi depicts the tawaif culture as women fighting for power or against each other, rather than showcasing the culture where women share and discuss ragas, ghazals, or poetry.
Catch the full interview HERE.
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