Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi starring big actresses like Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, and others will soon hit Netflix. Based on the life of courtesans, this will be the third movie based on prostitution in India by the Bajirao Mastani director after Alia Bhatt-led Gangubai Kathiawadi and Devdas.
Movies on sex workers and prostitution are not new to Bollywood. Here are 5 other movies based on the same topic that earlier hit the theaters:
Chandni Bar
Released in 2001, this Madhur Bhandarkar-helmed film was led by Atul Kulkarni and Tabu and depicted the life of Mumtaz, a girl whose family is killed during communal riots. When Mumtaz comes to Mumbai to her uncle, he persuades her to start working as a barmaid as they are very poor.
Devdas
This story of prostitute Chandramukhi, Paro, and Devdas was written by a noted Bengali writer, and a movie on it was first made in Bengali. Later on, it was made with Dilip Kumar, Suchitra Sen, and Vaijayanthimala in the lead. And in 2002, Sanjay Leela Bhansali made Devdas with Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Madhuri Dixit in the lead. Although the treatment of each era has been different, the story vividly highlighted the life of a prostitute.
Begum Jaan
The movie stars Vidya Balan as Begum Jaan a prostitute and head of the brothel. She has raised many sex workers who were shunned by families or abandoned on the streets. The movie is a period drama and also stars Gauhar Khan in an important role.
Chori Chori Chupke Chupke
Rani Mukerji and Preity Zinta were paired opposite Salman Khan in this film in which Madhubala aka Madhu played by Preity is a prostitute who agrees to bear Raj aka Salman’s baby because his wife played by Rani Mukerji cannot bear children. During her pregnancy, Madhu falls in love with Raj but later on realises that society will not allow her to lead a normal life and promises Raj that after delivering her baby she will not become a prostitute again.
Talaash: The Answer Lies Within
Majorly a crime thriller, it also touched on other dimensions like prostitution and the existence of ghosts. Led by Aamir Khan under his home production, the movie starred Rani Mukerji as the female lead. However, it was Kareena Kapoor Khan who was the surprise package and played the role of the prostitute who later on turns into a ghost.