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The purpose of the present study was to examine sexist lyrics in the most popular Bollywood item songs. Patriarchy and sexism are strengthened by cultural practices, which then effect mainstream cinema and songs. These go forward to influence the audiences that consume them. Songs are especially interesting because they do not require a visual medium to be consumed, and can be involuntarily consumed in public places and through the radio. Certain songs are also more popular than their parent movies, and item songs are a genre of songs which are very prevalent in India. These songs not only visually depict women as a product of the male gaze, but also have lyrics which are both overtly and covertly predominantly sexist. A list of the most popular Bollywood item songs was prepared, and English translation of these songs was obtained from 3 different websites (www.bollynook.com, www.filmyquotes.com,www.bollymeaning.com). Thematic analysis was used for the interpretation of the data. Patterns relating to sexism were identified, and 'stalking', 'sexualisation', 'objectification' and 'stereotypical portrayal of genders' were the four themes derived from the sexist lyrics.
Keywords: sexism, item songs, bollywood, stalking, sexualisation, objectification, stereotypical portrayal of genders
India was ranked the most dangerous country in the world for women by a report published by The Thomson Reuters Foundation in June, 2018 (Gowen, 2018). The report also noted that cases of crimes against women rose by 83 per cent between 2007 and 2016, where there were four cases of rape every hour. National Crime Records Bureau statistics for 2012 to 2016 show that approximately 40% of female reported rape victims were minors and 95% knew the rapist. These statistics indicate that there is systematic sexism and a patriarchal power structure that exists in a large scale in the country, which objectify women to such an extent that many men and male-dominated families feel like they have the right to exert power over a woman, whether it be in the form of rape, infant foeticide, eve-teasing, or harassment. There are multiple cultural factors prevalent which keep this power structure going, and allow it to display itself in the form of overt behaviour. Mainstream culture is consumed by everybody in society, whether it be in the form of books, movies, music, etc. Because...