We have seen a lot of Bollywood action movies where a macho malepolicewalain all his might beats up the bad guys and becomes a hero who will come calling wherever there is a need for justice. On the other hand, it is interesting to observe that we see the role of women constables more often than not only escorting women suspects to the police station or accompanying male police officers who are leading a case at hand. As a breath of fresh air, Swara Bhaskar’sEros Nowshow”Flesh”brings to us an officer who is not just a woman but is also a powerful character retaining her agency and authority.
“Flesh”is an important show which brings out the morbid truth of sex trafficking in India. Not only this, the character of Swara Bhaskar leading as an officer on a mission to burst the sex traffickers is an important one as well and for all the right reasons. Her role takes up a space that has been male-dominated for a long time. Taking a reality check, lack of women forces in comparison to men has been a matter of predicament even in the real police stations. It has been argued by a number of social thinkers that the shortage of women police task force in active positions affects how various crimes perpetrated against women are dealt with.
While a number of conversations about the various gender-based crimes are taking place in the mainstream, sex trafficking still remains one of the excluded subjects. Trading human bodies for sexual exploitation is a crime that traumatises women in incomprehensible ways. The victims of sex trafficking are manacled to a life of poverty and deprived of education and health. The life of these victims are traumatic and in danger at all times. They are brought from the far-flung geographies under the many gullible pretexts like work, money etc.