Ishika Shahi: “Women Don't Want to Be Perfect, They Want to Be Seen as Human”
For Ishika Shahi, the most powerful female characters on screen aren't the ones who never fail. Her new web show, Tu Yaa Koi Nahi, which is produced under Directors Kut Production and streams on their official YouTube channel, is getting good reviews. Speaking about the portrayal of strong confident women in her shows, she said they're the ones who keep going after they do.
She said, "A character who makes mistakes but continues moving forward is far more empowering to me than someone who never fails. Girls my age are still figuring out life, relationships and careers. It's comforting to watch characters who are going through the same journey and don't give up despite making mistakes."
The old template doesn't work anymore. She said, "We don't want to be seen as perfect women. We want to be seen as human beings, people who have flaws, who get confused and who are still figuring life out. Society often assumes women are expected to have everything together, but we're human too. We make mistakes, and that's okay. Relatable characters are always more meaningful than perfect ones."
What stories still miss, according to Ishika, is the full picture. She said, "Girls today are incredibly self-aware but also vulnerable. We can be ambitious, but we can also be exhausted. We can be feminists while still being romantics. Women today don't fit into just one box, we carry many different versions of ourselves at the same time."
