'Housefull 5': Director Tarun Mansukhani REACTS to film being trolled for objectifying women – 'There's a lot of scrutiny on social media..'

Time of India

a day ago

's comedy film 'Housefull 5' may be smashing box office records, but not everyone is cheering. A section of the audience has criticised the film for being 'sexist' and objectifying women.
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Many on social media have pointed out that the film is full of sexual innuendos and relies heavily on female characters for 'skin show'. But director
has responded to the criticism—and he's not holding back.
'There's a lot of scrutiny on Social Media'
In a chat with News18 Showsha, Tarun shared that he sees the online chatter as a positive sign, especially because it means people are reacting to the film. 'I feel like that there's a lot of scrutiny on social media.
I also believe that scrutiny tends to only happen on successful films. You tend to keep quiet if a film isn't working at all. That's when no one has any opinion and they don't say anything. So, when people are making noise about my film, I actually feel very happy about it,' he said.
He added that viewers seem to be watching the film with a certain kind of mindset, and they are choosing to highlight only a specific side of it. 'It means that they're watching it with a certain eye and sensibility.
You can scrutinise it. That's fine. You've paid money to watch it and so, you get to have an opinion on my film. It's not a placid film about which you don't care or have an opinion. For those who're calling it out, I want to say that it's your choice of seeing and focusing on that aspect of the film," he added.
Soundarya Sharma trolled for her role
Soundarya Sharma in particular has found herself in the middle of a social media storm.
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Trolls have criticised her decision to act in 'Housefull 5', calling her role nothing more than an excuse for glamour and 'skin show'. Some viewers feel that the film is too similar to adult comedies like 'Grand Masti', where the female characters are only present for visual appeal. However, the director feels this view ignores the actual role women play in the plot.
'The actual plot is driven by women'
Mansukhani strongly defended the female characters in 'Housefull 5', saying they are the ones who push the story forward. Tarun says, 'Akshay decides to play Jolly and he comes to know that there's a missing son. So, he hires the character of
(Fakhri) and asks him to join him on this search.
One thing leads to another and they decide to backstab together. It's Sonam (Bajwa) who backstabs Riteish (Deshmukh) and helps further the plot, that in turn helps bring a third Jolly. The actual plot is driven by women – to get the money. There's a Soundarya who's equal parts a suspect in this entire thing because she's busy transferring funds into an offshore account.'
By walking through the plot twists, he explained that the women in the story are far from being background characters—they play key roles in shaping the storyline.
He added that the audience is free to interpret the film however they want, but there is more to it than just surface-level humour. 'One may choose to see a sexist side to it but I feel that I've done a lot more. If people haven't seen the film, how will the plot details transfer to them? And when they see it, it's the audience's choice to focus on whichever aspect they want to," he said.
Akshay Kumar's Housefull 5 Surpasses Salman Khan's Sikandar at the Box Office