Calling out the film industry for its ageist attitude towards female actors, Bhumika Chawla has recently lamented the lack of good roles for actresses as they grow older.

“A male actor is still playing the hero, while ageism towards female actors leave them with a definite shelf life,” she said in a recent interview with Siddharth Kanan.

Iterating that a change in the right direction should come from the industry, Bhumika also said that the audience can’t be blamed for the current situation. “If we change something, then the audience will accept it. If we don't change it, then how will they accept it?”

The Tere Naam actress, however, conceded that OTT platforms were coming up with significant roles for senior actresses. “Content-driven films and web series have good work for senior actresses. OTT platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime are creating central roles for them. However, commercial films are still persisting with the same old system, narrowing the scope for the female lead in a movie.”

Having made her acting debut with Telugu film Yuvakudu in 2000, Bhumika became a household name after sharing screen space with Salman Khan in Satish Kaushik-helmed 2003 blockbuster Tere Naam. She recently reunited with her Salman in Farhad Samji’s Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, which arrived in cinemas on April 21.

The actress was last seen in the Tamil thriller Kannai Nambathey in which she performed a double role. In 2022, she appeared in the Hindi film Operation Romeo, starring Sidhant Gupta and Vedika Pinto. The actress was also part of Telugu films like Sita Ramam and Butterfly.