Crying woman sells: Rabia Butt blames audience, writers for popularising harmful stereotypes

Actor-model emphasised the need for strong women on screen

Pakistani actor and model Rabia Butt recently appeared as a panel guest at a local varsity event to make a strong statement on the prevailing trope of the ‘damsel in distress’ on screen. The Jeevan Nagar star protested the common practice of showing men cheating on their partners, arguing that this scenario frequently underpins the weak heroine.

“The hero typically has an extra-marital love interest,” she noted before slamming portrayals that demonise strong women as women of bad character. Rabia expressed her surprise at the popularity of such depictions despite various examples of tenacious women in real life, asserting, “Our mothers are so strong, they’ve got all of us on our toes.”

However, the model had to concede that such stories are the creation of a system instead of an individual’s property. “Who writes these stories?” Rabia posed rhetorically. “You can’t pin this on directors solely or production houses. Writers pen these stories. Everyone has done their part [in encouraging these stories].”

She placed responsibility on viewers who make such exploits profitable for showrunners. Rabia contended, “The audience who continues to watch is also culpable. If a drama is made featuring a strong woman and ends up being a flop, why would the production house deliberately risk loss?”

“The crying woman sells,” the actor added. “This is why production houses adapt such stories. And how does this sell? Because people watch this.” Underscoring the audience’s complicity in perpetuating harmful gender tropes, Rabia strongly declared, “People lie when they say they want something else.”

She furthered on, “They don’t. They want the same old beaten and downtrodden woman who cries to herself in her room alone.” This is not the first time Rabia has articulated the need for better on-screen women. Essaying the role of a female police officer in the mini-series Gunah, the actor previously divulged the depths of her character's consciousness and shed light on the challenges faced by women in a male-dominated society.

In a heartfelt Instagram post, she stated, "In portraying the role of a righteous female police officer in mini-series Gunah in a society where the rule of law is but a distant dream and women are deemed inferior to men, I, Rabia Butt, delve into the depths of my character's consciousness. As a Pakistani actress, I cannot ignore the harsh reality of our male-dominated society and the imperfections within our law and order system."

The star talked about the difficulty of the role as well. "Playing this character, my mind became a battleground of emotions. On one hand, the weight of responsibility to lead by example and deliver justice in such an arduous context pressed upon me. On the other hand, profound empathy emerged for the countless women who face daily struggles in a society that fails to recognise their true potential," wrote the actor.

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