Six Times Menopause Was Spoken About On Silver Screen

Menopause is less widely talked about. When there is a taboo around periods, you can imagine how silence would prevail on body issues related to it. But ironically, society does have a view of menopause that is totally negative. If a woman reaches her menopause, many people say that she becomes useless as she can no longer produce children which supposedly is a woman’s primary duty. Others use menopause as a ticking clock on a woman’s head by which she should be alert, get married and have children.

But menopause is not just about marriage or pregnancy. Yes, it means a woman cannot reproduce. But that doesn’t render her life worthless. She still has a long run to go. Perhaps for some menopause is the end of a youth era but for others, it is a beginning of a new journey.

As much as we need to escalate the conversation around periods, we need to talk about menopause too. Menopause affects women’s health, their life quality and economic production due to hormonal imbalance.

If you have watched Bombay Begums, you can see how menopause affects the life of Pooja Bhatt’s character Rani as she constantly struggles with hot flush and irritability. One-third of a woman’s life goes into suffering from &t=370s">menopausal symptoms. But women are rarely told about how menopause can affect them, neither do they receive support from friends and family nor do they know the symptoms and that they are treatable.

Speaking about hot flushes and changes that women undergo during menopause, Michelle Obama said in her podcast,” "It was like somebody put a furnace in my core and turned it on high. And then everything started melting. And I thought, 'Well this is crazy, I can't, I can't, I can't do this,'" she said on her podcast.

She added, "What a woman's body is taking her through is important information. It's an important thing to take up space in society because half of us are going through this but we're living like it's not happening,"

But how many of us know about the symptoms and impacts of menopause in a woman’s life? How many of us think about menopause beyond its decline in ovarian functions? When the conversation surrounding menopause is hushed, we can only imagine how it is represented in films. There have been some films and series that did discuss menopause and we have compiled a list for you.

Suggested Reading: Why The Conversation Around Periods Has To Get Louder

Movies That Discussed Impacts Of Menopause On A Woman’s Life

Sex and the City 2

Sex and the City 2 touches upon the issue of menopause through its character Samantha’s life. The movie is about four women- Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha- living glamourous lives as a break from the monotony of existence. Carrie, Miranda and Charlotte meet Samatha in Abu Dhabi and start their glamourous break from a life full of pressures.

Samatha is seen carrying a box of pills which she calls hormones and rubs creams on her vagina to deal with her perimenopausal symptoms. Nowhere does the movie suggest that just because Samantha is dealing with menopausal symptoms, she is not as desirable and sexy.

W@40

W@40 is an 11-minute musical film discussing perimenopause made by Thrissur-based filmmaker Smitha Sathish
The short film deals with women from different walks of life who are facing perimenopausal symptoms in their 40s. Women featured are suffering from symptoms like depression, hot flush, insomnia and mood swings. One of the characters in the movie, who works at a factory, feels the hot flush so badly that she turns a table fan towards her.

But her boss, unaware of the issue, turns it back towards himself. Moreover, another woman featured in the movie is seen splashing water onto her face while her husband is busy enjoying his drink. The movie not only showcases how women suffer during menopause but also talks about how men are oblivious to the issue.

Speaking about the movie, Sathish says, “People think menopause happens at 50, but perimenopause begins in the 40s. Many women go through physical and psychological changes that cause anxiety and depression, but people around them fail to understand what they are going through. I wanted to create conversations around it in the public sphere.”

Hot Flush

HOT Flush is another short film by Smitha Sathish that revolves around the issue of menopause. It is based on a homemaker in her twenties who suffers from hot flushes frequently. She even becomes irritated, and angry and cries for no reason. These and many other symptoms are showcased in the film to show what a woman goes through during perimenopause or menopause.

Bombay Begums

As we are talking about hot flush (sudden bouts of feeling hot and severe sweating), we must not forget the portrayal of Rani in Bombay Begums. While Rani is a powerful woman making her stand in a male-dominated field, she is also a woman who is undergoing menopause. We frequently see her having a hot flush and splashing water on her face.

She continuously denies seeking attention or empathy from her colleagues because it is a stereotype that a menopausal boss is r=irrational, irritable and screechy. Moreover, through Rani's silence on menopause, the movie hints at how women are forced to undergo menopause silently.

MenoPause

Menopause is another short film by Pratik Shah that talks about menopause, as the title itself discloses. The 19-minute film revolves around the life of a woman who is reaching menopause. It showcases the changes that go through that turn her from being a ‘Superwoman’ who can do it all to an imperfection.

While the woman is not very aware of what is happening to her, the movie portrays the reaction to her changes by her son, husband and boss. They never support her during the emotional and physical changes she undergoes and appreciates her only when she is working for them. This is why her life turns into an imperfect one as she reaches menopause.

Painful Pride

Painful Pride is a short film on menopause by director Saumitra Singh. The film is based on a woman, played by Bollywood actor Pallavi Joshi, who is struggling with menopause. She has frequent hot flushes, disturbed sleep, irritability and a lack of interest in sex. She is also reeling under the fear that her lack of desires might push her husband away.

The film won a lot of awards for its perfect portrayal of a menopausal woman. "The story is about her and her family's acceptance of the change, and the realisation that menopause is not a disease, it's just a phase," the director says.