Bra, short for brassiere, is an undergarment for women that has continued to be a subject of male gaze for generations. It is expected to maintain the mystery behind ‘choli ke peeche kya hai?’, the hush-hush question that an entire song was based on in the 1993 film Khal Nayak.
Cut to 2023, Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, rightly solves the mystery behind the blouse while proudly normalizing that choli ke peeche is nothing but a BRA.
(Spoiler alert)
I am talking about the scene featuring Ranveer Singh and Churni Ganguly where both of them step out for bra shopping. Ranveer as Rocky Randhawa is initially excited to shop with Rani Chatterjee’s mom, Anjali, but his enthusiasm goes low when he realizes that she is going to buy a bra for herself.
Rocky squirms and shows displeasure at even touching the bra while portraying exactly how most men feel uncomfortable inside the lingerie store. He soon gets an earful from Anjali about treating the bra as just an undergarment. Rocky goes on to defend himself, saying that the discomfort comes from the respect that he has for women.
Not to forget, Ranveer as an actor aptly challenges the men’s psyche about bra while wearing it in the scene. It is a well-written and well-performed sequence by the Rocky Aur Rani….team.
The bra shopping scene in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani is hilarious but also significant to the audience for how it breaks the taboo of the brassiere in a desi household.
The line where Churni says, “sadiyon se aurtein mardo ke chaddiyan ghis rahi hain, aur tum ek bra ko nahi touch kar sakte” strikes the right chord while making the existence of bra in public sphere as normal as possible. ‘Coz the same bra automatically turns sexy behind the doors.
And this uneasiness is not confined to men but affects a section of women too. Many women feel uncomfortable while interacting with male shopkeepers during lingerie shopping. Why does shopping for intimate apparel have to be so hard? It is just as normal as buying a men’s ‘Rupa Frontline’ vest or ‘Swagat Banyan’.
It is a hush-hush topic to be discussed among men, even within the household. So much so that many desi moms end up hiding their washed bras under other fabric while a men’s vest smiles with freedom as it gets dried up in the air. Let it breathe, man!
Bra talk may sound preachy to some of you, but it is definitely the need of the hour. Where does this awkwardness come from? It is just a fabric that has been facing discrimination for quite some time now. Choli ke peeche dil nahin, BRA hai!