Discuss; don’t trivialise
Updated On: 22 October, 2023 07:31 AM IST | Mohar Basu
Returning to Bollywood post Phillauri, Mehreen Pirzada on triggering a conversation about marital rape with Sultan of Delhi
Mehreen Pirzada
Six years after making her Bollywood debut with the Anushka Sharma-starrer Phillauri, Mehreen Pirzada returned to Hindi entertainment with the Milan Luthria-directed Sultan of Delhi. Adapted from the novel Sultan of Delhi: Ascension, the period crime thriller showcases Pirzada as the young woman, Sanjana, who is portrayed as a naive and fragile soul deeply invested in love. As the story unfolds, she experiences a profound sense of betrayal that shatters her world. Sharing her excitement of working with filmmaker Luthria on her debut OTT project, she says, “I became a fan after watching Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai [2010] and The Dirty Picture [2011]. I loved the era, the songs, the retro look, and the snazzy dialogues. I manifested working with him some day. I was excited to meet him and take on the role of Sanjana when he told me about her.”
Milan Luthria
Pirzada shares that she “loved the character and storyline” of the gangster drama, and the opportunity to learn from the ensemble cast—Tahir Raj Bhasin, Mouni Roy, Vinay Pathak, Anupriya Goenka, and Harleen Sethi—was not one to miss. Breaking down her character in the Disney+ Hotstar series, she says, “Sanjana longs to form real connections. Her mental and emotional turmoil is a result of her own doings, but the arc was so interesting to play. She suffers marital rape, and it was a subject I wanted to portray to trigger a discussion.” While the scene did spark a conversation, Pirzada shares that a certain section of the media and audience trivialised the trauma by calling it a “sex scene”. She recently took to X (formerly known as Twitter) and wrote, “This trivialises something that is a serious issue that many women in the world are currently dealing with. People should understand that they have sisters and daughters too. I pray to God they never have to go through such trauma in their own lives, as the thought of such brutality and violence against women is repugnant.”
Tags
Trending Stories
Latest Web Stories
Latest Photos
06 August, 2026 08:34 PM IST | In Photos: Hiroshima Day Silent Peace March 2026
Preshit Deorukhkar
17 December, 2025 11:56 AM IST | IN PHOTOS: MLAs at Vidhan Bhavan during Maharashtra Legislative Council polls
Asif Ali Sayed
09 September, 2024 09:32 PM IST | IN PHOTOS: People in Mumbai celebrate Gauri Puja during Ganeshotsav
Asif Ali Sayed
09 September, 2024 09:13 PM IST | IN PHOTOS: Mumbai witnesses sunny weather as rains take a break
Asif Ali Sayed
Latest Videos
ADVERTISEMENT
Mid-day Fast
Latest Headlines
12 August, 2026 07:33 PM IST | Oshin Fernandes
10 August, 2026 07:17 PM IST | Test Tushar
10 August, 2026 11:49 AM IST | Makepeace Sitlhou
06 August, 2026 08:34 PM IST | Preshit Deorukhkar