Showbiz / Alia Bhatt’s Short Film ‘Going Home’ Goes Viral

Alia Bhatt’s Short Film ‘Going Home’ Goes Viral

Showbiz Nov 03, 2014

by Anokhi Admin

Alia Bhatt’s New Viral Video Generates A Buzz & Gains Praise From Ashton Kutcher

While India has been advancing in the economic arena, violence against its women continues to remain a serious issue. Many attempts have been made in the media to draw attention to the problem, one in particular was Anurag Kashyap film That Day After Everyday, which highlights the issue of teasing and addresses how to fight back against perpetrators.

In contrast to this is the recent buzzed about project involving Alia Bhatt in Vikas Bahl’s short film, Going Home (2014). Created as part of #VogueEmpower, which released a series of videos on women empowerment, this video joins the series of shorts made for Vogue India. According to Times of India, Bahl posts, “I pledge to create a short film titled Going Home, in which we visualize a utopia for women, where, unlike today, mistrust and fear don't dictate actions and decisions."

At a time when it’s dangerous for young women and girls to be out, (as we saw in the 2012 Delhi Rape case) the five-minute film ends with a powerful message: “Impossible in the Real World – Can we give her the world she believe exists?” as a car with young men drives off after giving a stranded girl a ride home. Unlike many other films, which tend to vilify men, this film leaves us with the hopeful outlook that there can be less violence and rapes against women in India if men gave females the respect and dignity they deserve.

Video courtesy of Vogue India

While the issue is much more complicated, Going Home has definitely caught the attention of many including Hollywood star Ashton Kutcher who shared and praised Bhatt’s film on his official Facebook page. He wrote, “Wow, just wow”.

The staff of FirstPost also made a comment stating, “The film deserves credit simply because it acknowledges that women need to be in public spaces at all times, even at night and that it's not unreasonable for a woman to expect safety at all times. This idea by the way is something that many women's groups have been arguing for a long time. As the video states, safety of women at all times should be the norm, rather than an exception.”

Pic Credit: twitter.com/aplusk

Agreeably, safety of women should be the norm no matter where you live and this is exactly what the film highlights. Sadly as a viewer watching the short you find yourself expecting the worst of the group of men in the car, only to be presently surprised. In order to rid this stereotype of men in the country, India has to take major steps to revolutionize and reform its law, medical, and societal infrastructure, which continues to blame rape victims for provoking the violence subjected on them. (This was especially highlighted in Aamir Khan’s show, Satyamev Jayate. Catch the video here.)

What do you think of the video's message? Can we give her the world she thinks exists?

_{Feature Image Source: Huffington Post}