India
is
"regressive
for
women" and
a
"depressing"
place
to
be,
says
Bollywood
actress
Mallika
Sherawat,
explaining
why
she
divides
her
time
between
India
and
the
US.
She
was
speaking
in
the
66th
Cannes
International
Film
Festival,
at
an
interaction
at
The
Variety
Studio.
Mallika
has
flaunted
the
link
of
her
interview
on
her
Twitter
page.
Talking
to
Variety's
Steve
Gaydos,
the
36-year-old
Indian
actress,
who
divides
her
time
between
India
and
Los
Angeles,
was
highly
critical
of
her
country,
particularly
for
women.
"I
made
a
conscious
decision
to
divide
my
time
between
Los
Angeles
and
India," she
said.
"So
when
I
enjoy
the
social
freedom
in
America
and
go
back
to
India,
which
is
so
regressive
for
women,
it's
depressing.
As
an
independent
woman,
it's
really
depressing."
Hailing
from
Rohtak
in
Haryana,
Mallika
entered
the
Indian
film
industry
in
2003
with
Khwahish
and
grabbed
headlines
for
her
cleavage-baring
clothes
and
over
15
screen
kisses.
She
also
starred
in
popular
Hindi
films
like
Murder
and
Welcome.
She
went
international
with
Jackie
Chan-starrer
2005
film
The
Myth,
and
then
did
Jennifer
Lynch's
Hisss
and
William
Dear's
Politics
of
Love.
Mallika's
first
visit
to
the
Cannes
fest
was
with
Jackie
Chan
for
the
promotion
of
The
Myth.
The
actress
is
now
busy
with
an
Indian
film,
Dirty
Politics.
Talking
about
it,
she
said,
"The
film
began
six
months
ago
and
it's
a
biopic.
It's
a
story
of
a
woman
who
is
a
nurse,
she
gets
involved
with
a
politician
and
gets
murdered
in
the
end.
It
shows
how
the
government
reacts
to
it."
Mallika
went
on,
"India
is
a
hypocritical
society
where
women
are
really
at
the
bottom
as
compared
to
men.
And
here
was
this
woman
(in
the
film)
who
actually
had
the
courage
to
stand
up
to
this
politician
who
kind
of
raped
her,
molested
her,
abused
her
and
record
his
misgivings
and
release
it
to
the
press."
She
said,
"You
don't
do
that
in
a
country
like
India,
and
she
had
the
courage
to
do
that." She
claimed
she
was
the
first
actress
in
India
to
kiss
on
screen
and
wear
a
bikini.
"And
instantly
I
became
a
fallen
woman
and
a
superstar
at
the
same
time.
Because
there
is
a
moral
code
-
that
this
is
what
a
leading
lady
can
do
on
screen
and
this
is
what
she
can't
do.
But
I
did
everything
I
am
not
supposed
to
do,"
she
added.
Mallika
shared
how
there
now
was
a
"new
wave
of
young
Indian
directors,
producers
and
writers
who
are
inspired
(by)
American
cinema,
European
cinema
and
are
making
meaningful
films.
But
it's
a
very
small
section".
She
even
took
credit
for
bringing
a
wave
of
change.
"I
was
one
of
those
actresses
who
said
that
in
21st
century,
how
are
you
going
to
show
passion
on
the
screen?
It
can't
be
symbolic
any
more,
and
we've
got
to
kiss
on
screen.
So
yes,
there's
a
change
happening,
which
is
very
positive,"
she
added.
IANS