Shriya Pilgaonkar opens up on playing cop in Chhal Kapat: 'Society views female cops differently due to sexist biases'
She has played everything from a girl next door to an ambitious lawyer, but Chhal Kapat sees Shriya Pilgaonkar don the police uniform for the first time. The new murder mystery series on Zee5 has Shriya as a police officer investigating a murder in a small town. Ahead of the show's release, Shriya speaks with HT about her portrayal and the society's general perception of female police officers. (Also read: Shriya Pilgaonkar on Delhi's air pollution: 'I'm concerned how it is going to worsen in the times to come')
For long, the depiction of women in uniform has been rather masculine in Hindi cinema. This can be best exemplified by the fact that the highest-grossing Hindi film with a female cop in the lead is titled Mardaani (Masculine). Talking about the necessity of making women in uniform masculine on screen, Shriya says, "Society looks at a male cop and a female cop differently because of their own inherent sexist biases. It is almost a defence mechanism that causes a woman to take up space, and it's because of years of conditioning."
However, the actor says that Chhal Kapat, her new show, does not tread this path. "Here, what I like is that we have kept Devika's femininity," she says elaborating, "She doesn't have to be super aggressive while interrogating someone. She is ok to be gentle. But she will be tough, too. I like that there is no aggression for the sake of it. But yes, women in spaces where men have historically taken up more space tend to hold on to that and stay in power much more."
Directed by Ajay Bhuyan, produced by Juggernaut Production, Chhal Kapat - The Deception is set to premiere on ZEE5 on June 6, 2025. The show also stars Kamya Ahlawat, Ragini Dwivedi, Tuhina Das, Yahhve Sharma, Pranay Pachauri, Smaran Sahu, and Anuj Sachdeva.
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