Netflix Canada needs to pull plug on racist Bollywood films: Paradkar

Documentaries such as 13th, movies such as Beasts of No Nation, TV shows such as Narcos — Netflix is host to some mind-expanding infotainment, with shows that are centred on the voices of those whose stories are being told, their locales, their perspectives, their narratives.

Netflix is perceived as edgy, it appears to get “doing the right thing”; it dumped House of Cards faster than you could say, “Claire for president!” after allegations emerged about creepy Kevin’s sexual misconduct with young actors.

Plus, it didn’t back down from airing Dear White People, despite the outrage of those who deemed it racist for not centering on the feelings of white people.

So far, so good.

Why, then, why does it beam bigoted Bollywood movies into our homes?

Bollywood is not to be confused with Indian cinema — there are marvelous independent films in various languages. Bollywood refers to Hindi films by big studios, with big stars, big bucks, formulaic rom/com song-and-dance.

This genre of cinema also peddles sexist ideas, homophobia, colourism/shadeism and increasingly racism, specifically, anti-Black racism — all delivered as light-hearted fun. Never mind that it has an outsized influence on personal and social decisions such as whom to marry, whom to hire, whom to value, whom to discard.

I was looking for a break recently from bigotry, racism and sexism, the stressful discourse of which informs my work life.