Tisca Chopra: Not much has changed for women in the Indian film industry

Actress Tisca Chopra, who was recently in the Pink city, was spotted exploring the beautiful monuments and city markets of Jaipur. In an exclusive chat, the actress opens up about her upcoming projects, experience behind the camera and more. Excerpts:‘Everyone loves Jaipur because it’s a cultural hub’Tisca has been coming to Jaipur for a long time and she has a childhood friend in the city. “We have been friends since I was just three years old. So, whenever I am in town, we love to hang out, shop and spend time together. Jaipur is a cultural hub, so everyone loves the city. It offers the perfect combination of food, culture and heritage. I went to Johari Bazaar, enjoyed local food and even watched a puppet show,” she shares.‘I enjoy acting as well as direction’Tisca has tried her hands at acting, direction, production and even writing. So what does she enjoy the most? She shares, “I like everything- acting, producing and directing too. That’s why I keep doing something or the other. It does not make a difference whether I am in front of the camera or behind it, whether I am acting or directing. For me, all of them are creative processes to narrate a story to entertain the public. What matters to me is to be able to tell the story authentically-a story that looks real as well as entertaining. Also, it should be something that ends leaving the audience craving for more. Such stories give me a lot of satisfaction.” After directing short films, Tisca is also working on a full-fledged feature film, which she will be directing. Sharing more details about it, the actress says, “It will be a murder mystery, a dark film which I will start a little later this year.” Does she have any plans to act in it? “No. Since I am directing it, I would like to focus only on direction,” she says.‘Not much has changed for women in the Indian film industry’Talking about women and the changing scenario in the film industry, Tisca believes that the film industry is slowly and gradually changing. “When we talk about women in the Indian film industry, I believe nothing much has changed and it’s still in the process of changing. I don’t like it when people talk about films as ‘female-oriented’, ‘women-centric’, or directed by a ‘female director’. Why don’t we just accept it as a good film directed by a talented and creative person? Why do we need to categorise it on the basis of gender? It’s high time that we think beyond gender and accept the creative talent of a person, without getting into the gender discussion,” she signs off.