'Women' seems like a small word to describe spirited, intelligent, gorgeous, hardworking, life-giving beings. There's so much most of us endure in such short lives that it certainly seems unfair to have only a day of celebration. Appreciation mustn't be bound to timely gestures and hence if one has to wait an entire year for March 8 to show their gratitude towards the women in their lives on International Women's day, it almost seems like a failed purpose.  For years there have been debates over the celebration of women's day and what it truly means. It's not about giving free shots to ladies or shopping discounts at retail stores, it is about taking a step forward each year to making the world a more balanced place by providing more opportunities to women. At a time when ladies voicing their opinions on pay parity, crimes against women and other graver issues are being termed as 'feminazi' - the go-to troll term to silence women,  I take a trip down the cine lane to remind everyone why these women's voices are important through some celluloid references. International Women's Day 2020: 'Who Started Women's Day?', 'What is the Colour And Theme for Women's Day?' Your Questions Answered.

For women to become as vocal as we are today, it's been a long and hard journey. Our voices have been suppressed at home, in those boardroom meetings, in classrooms, in courtrooms and even in cinema since time immemorial. Although films and TV shows have every now then given us those golden moments where a single dialogue or that minute-long monologue pierced right through our souls because what binds us together, all women, is our pain and suffering. I have often turned to screen in the hope to find women who speak their hearts out and over the years, some of these cinematic moments have stuck with me. Some recent and some old, this women's day, I watch these powerful monologues by female characters and realise our voices matter today even more than ever.

What are Women Made Of? - Fleabag

Phoebe Waller-Bridge's show Fleabag is one of the finest works in recent times to have looked so deeply into the workings of a troubled woman. Just the fact that she refers to her protagonist without a name and in subcontext 'Fleabag' is a big statement. While the show is laden with beautiful commentary on women's desires, mental health and other themes, one of the most beautiful exchanges in the show happens to be between Fleabag meeting Belinda (Kristin Scott Thomas). "Women are born with pain, in-built. It’s our physical destiny: period pains, sore boobs, childbirth, you know. We carry it within ourselves throughout our lives, men don’t." The beautifully worded dialogue truly defines what it is to be a woman.

Women and Their 'Defined Roles' - Mona Lisa Smile

"What will the future scholars see when they study us?" asks Julia Roberts' Katherine Ann Watson in a 1950s all-women's private school classroom. Ask the same question to yourself today and while you may say a lot has changed, we are a world that celebrates women's appearances and their porcelain beauty image more than their academic achievements. Among many other films, I pick this scene because it rightly questions what are "the roles we are born to fill" as women and why should there be any roles defined. We are but thinking creatures just like our male counterparts and we must have the opportunities to go by our instincts.

Imperfect Women Are Real Women  - Marriage Story

There's no winner when it comes to a separation/divorce, especially in case of couples such as Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) and Charlie (Adam Driver) from Marriage Story. It hurts equally but a major difference is the aftermath of it all. It is their post-divorce encounters that are bound to vary because the society always looks at women differently. It's brilliantly put in Laura Dern's Academy Award-winning act when she talks about women having to hold an 'ideal mother' image and why it's crucial for Nicole's (Johansson) character who is going through a divorce to realise that. "You will always be held to a different higher standard," she says and well, that's the ugly truth right there. Imperfection is a trait that women aren't allowed to live with be it as wives or mothers and this scene is the perfect answer to everything that is such ideas. Marriage Story Movie Review: Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver's Emotionally Charged Performances in This Separation Drama Will Leave You Moist Eyed.

The Voice Of Survivors - 13 Reasons Why

'Around 81% of women around the globe have experienced some kind of sexual harassment in their lives' this is what every slide reads for videos/reports relating to sexual harassment. The grave truth though is that we are desensitised to statistics. What we need to hear more is those spine chilling accounts of survivors. A true celebration of women's day for me would be to empower women with the strength to come out with their stories without the fear of shame and victim-blaming. A scene that powerfully captured this sentiment was the one in 13 Reasons Why where during Jessica Davis' (Alisha Boe) trial, we also see other female characters tell their stories of harassment and abuse. Sometimes we need to find solidity in reel women to find strength as real women and that's why such scenes make a difference.

Be the Voice Of Change - Hidden Figures

Nothing has come easy for us women and history has been witness to it all whether it is the suffragette movement or the inspiring story of Hidden Figures about a group of women of colour who were mathematicians at NASA in the 1960s, women have put up a fight to make things right. In order to bring change, you have to be the change and Janelle Monáe's Mary Jackson knows that well. In one of the finest scenes from this film, she is seen in a courtroom seeking for the ability to attend extension courses at an all-white high school in order to become an engineer. Monae's monologue on the importance of being 'first' is so good that  I wish we could celebrate more of these 'firsts' relating to women than other mundane things.

Women Have Ambitions Beyond Finding Love - Little Women

Ambitious is not a common adjective attached to women and it's disheartening because no one puts it better than Saoirse Ronan's Jo March in Little Women when she says, "I'm sick of people saying that love is all a woman is fit for." Even as Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women is set in the 1800s, Greta Gerwig makes sure that we relate to these women even today and with scenes such as this particular one, I imagine many women whispering under their breaths, "Me too". Ronan delivers the vulnerability of an ambitious woman who wants to be loved rather than be defined by it in a moving manner which echoes with many women today. Little Women Movie Review: Greta Gerwig's Adaptation is Emotional and Cleverly Crafted for Our Times With Stellar Performances by Saoirse Ronan and Florence Pugh.

This International women's day, I hope more women find their voice and are nurtured to cultivate and express their opinions from a younger age without the fear of judgement or shame in a society that accepts us as our natural selves!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 07, 2020 05:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).