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telly and on OTT platforms, she really hit have created with their genuinely bold
the spotlight with her disrobing acts and attitudes, wearing swimwear on screen
the outcomes posted on social media for all back in the old days. Cultured women wore
to view. Attracting all manner of attention, traditional Indian garb like sarees, and
from law enforcement to gawking onlookers only vamps wore skimpy costumes that
at her often public photo shoots too only in films. But cinema has always
One doesn’t really want to know what been the greatest communicator across the
point she is trying to make. Uorfi is a passage of time and change. And women
repeat act. Staking her all, she manages to have always had to fight for a voice. So
stay in the news over prolonged periods Bollywood gradually saw the induction of
of time, from one shenanigan till her next. heroines bold enough to wear swimming
Dropping her clothes has earned her oodles costumes –both, one, and two pieces on
of newsprint. screen.
But skin show is not exclusive to the Uorfis
of this notorious industry. It has been
in existence as far back as the fifties and
sixties. In fact, the first case goes further
back to 1938, with the film Brahmachari
and actress Meenakshi Shirodkar, who
apparently sported a one piece swimsuit,
and even shed six yards of saree and
jumped into a pool, as an act of seduction in
the film. That precedes the bikini which is
only a 70 year old garment, by a long shot.
Nutan bares it
Leading senior actresses have flaunted
figure hugging clothes and bikinis too.
Sharmila Tagore (An Evening In Paris),
Nutan (Yaadgaar), Nargis (Awara),
Mumtaz (Apradh)and Vyjayanthimala
Meenakshi Shirodkar in (Sangam) sported swimwear in their
Brahmachari,1938 heydays, and even their modest displays
Considering India is the land of the caught some flak, possibly because these
Kamasutra, sex, nudity, skin show etc. generally saree- clad heroines displaying
are still discomforting topics causing their figures in swimsuits was unpalatable
extreme reactions, mostly not the right to their adoring fans. Sharmila Tagore
ones. Imagine the furore the actresses must sizzled on a magazine cover back in the
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