LIPSTICK UNDER MY BURKHA: THE TRAILER THEY DIDN'T WANT YOU TO SEE

"There are no good girls gone wrong, just bad girls found out," the spectacular Mae West had said sometime in the 1940s. Now almost seven decades later, a group of four women are living the statement by unleashing their unabashed, gorgeous selves upon the world. And of course it's a controversy; a controversy named Lipstick Under My Burkha.

Brought to life under the Prakash Jha banner by director Alankrita Shrivastava, who made her debut in 2011 with Turning 30, this film takes a stand against patriarchy, explores sexuality and slams prejudices through the lens of dreams and fantasies of four very real, very different women. It speaks of rebellion born from the very basic of human desires and portrays with simple acts, as small as applying that of applying lipstick and shopping for sleeveless blouses. Shrivastava dares to portray the reality of repression, and the desire to break free from it, through the lives of middle-class Indian women.

Within hours of the second, and might I add smashing, trailer being released, #LipstickUnderMyBurkha was trending on Twitter. A fitting reply to CBFC's earlier tantrums regarding the "lady oriented" content of the film? We think so! If the "sanskaari" Pahlaj Nihalani (chief Central Board of Film Certification, if you've been living under a rock) can withhold release of a critically and internationally awarded film on the basis of it containing "contagious sexual scenes, abusive words, audio pornography," then the trailer can definitely take a dig at him and the board with its strong and sassy message.

After all, we have all been wondering what newbie Plabita Borathakur's character puts in words, "Aisa kya ho jaayega? Aap humari aazaadi se itna darte kyun hai?" The trailer, and we are assuming the film as well, attempts to answer this fundamental question in what can be termed as a one-of-its-kind presentation. The first half of the fast-paced trailer addresses the accusations the film was faced with initially while the second half reveals snippets of the plot line with a very interesting placement of shots, each of which deal with sexual awakening of the lead characters being portrayed by Konkana Sen, Ratna Pathak Shah, Aahana Kumra and Borathakur (a shoutout for the awesome cast).

You can blame the premise of "four secret lives with four secret fantasies" or the patriarchal mindset afraid of women's "aazaadi" for the popularity but the film has been in the news ever since its first trailer was released last year in October. What seemed like an innocent portrayal of a powerful message back then is now being called a movement; and not just for its choice of subject but also for its victory against the CBFC.

But, and this is a big one, of the many films made on the variety of subjects dealing with feminism, very few have actually managed to hit the right spot. We seriously hope that this is not one of them and if it is indeed the path-breaker that it is promising to be, it shouldn't just be confined to the four walls of movie theatres. Films like this should be made widely available online and offline so that others like Nihalani, who think women and their desires ought to be veiled under a burkha can get a taste of reality.

Check out the trailer here:

Slated to release on July 21, Lipstick Under My Burkha will clash with big releases like Munna Michael and Daddy. However, if it is indeed a trailblazer, finding an audience will not be difficult.

Read more about the film here