Usually being a female villain is no fun, especially on TV, and even in some movies. You have to wear terrible make up and plot all day about how to make life more difficult for your bahu, adopted daughter, step daughter having to create torture devices with items like tea, jhaadu, etc. Their male villain companions are also disappointing and fickle, always ditching the female villain while trying to escape or the male villains turn righteous in the end and give long homilies about women and their place.
(I know I know some of the ladies above may actually be the ‘good guys’ but they look villainous to me)
The female villains usually don't get armies of flunkies, or tanks of liquid oxygen, or other diabolical torture devices involving electricity and glittering button panels. Those belong to the male villains alone. The female villains are allowed to dress as eccentrically and as ridiculously as the male villains though. Remember Rohini hattangadi Chaalbaaz?
There other kind of female villain to be- is the super hot one- the one who is either a. oversexed narcissist b. over sexed ball breaker c. over sexed manipulator (kaikeyi/macbeth-take your pick). This villain has a little bit more fun than the make up caked domestic trouble maker above- cos she gets around, she sleeps around. She is everywhere- in the office, in her skimpy clothes, trying to get that young fellow to sleep with her. She is sunning in the islands in her bikini plotting to bump off her rich husband. She is obsessive crazy and has only one thing on her mind- Evil (why what did you think I was going to say?)
In her intent to do evil, the female villain of today is somewhat like the male villain of long ago like Mogambo and Gabbar who were probably born plotting who they'd rape and which village to terrorize. However Gabbar and Mogambo's had armies and mansions and private nations they ruled, while our female villains have to just do all the bad work themselves- and on a much smaller scale too- no nations to blow up just marriages to break.
The male villain seems to be getting more complicated and less stereo typically evil -like John Abraham in Dhoom and Hritik Roshan in Dhoom- 2, Saif as Cyrus in Being Cyrus, and as Langda Tyagi in Omkara. Akshay Kumar, Emraan Hashmi have also started playign a new brand of villain who is evil all right but has 'layers'. So, its upto to the ladies to hold up the flag for being Evil for the sake of Evil. I would love to see Mad Scientist Evil Female Villain, or just evil evil corrupt politician female villain.
Ladies- you can be good or bad- you just cant be complicated.
PS: I actually started this post wantign to blog about my all time favorite female villain- Ramya- as Nilambri in Padayappa but got sidetracked. Next post- on Nilambri.
