The society that we live in can be cruel to women who are not beautiful according to set standards. The legendary actor Dustin Hoffman may have played the role of an actor who dresses up like a woman in Tootsie 30 years ago, but it is his remarks about our expectations from women that have become viral these days. In an interview that the thespian gave to American Film Institute last December, Justin Hoffman recalls the times during which he played the character of a man who turns up as a woman to find roles to survive.
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Hoffman said that though he passed the screen test dressing up as a woman to play the role of Dorothy Michaels, he felt the urge to appear more beautiful and requested the makeup artist to make him look more beautiful. This is what he felt when he just had to do for a short time but it certainly reflects the hard times all women go through all their lives trying hard to look beautiful all the time as this is what is expected of them by the society. Hoffman still remembers that he was told by the makeup team that it was not possible to make him look any more beautiful and how he broke down in tears in front of his wife explaining this to her at home that very day. He also tells that this episode made him very determined and he was doubly motivated to do the movie.
Hoffman says that we are brainwashed by the society as we grow up to expect beauty from women all the time. We are
made to think of them as beautiful objects and we out unnecessary pressure on women to try and look beautiful. Because opf all this brainwashing, most of us miss out on interactions with so called less beautiful women in our circles as we bypass them thinking them to be ugly by our own standards. This is really painful for the womenfolk who go through this ignominy 24X7 in their lives. It is indeed ironical that a successful male actor like Dustin Hoffman had to feel and behave like this when all he had to do was to pose off as a woman for just the role of a character in a movie. Burt we never pause for a moment to think about the plight of millions of women in our society who are not beautiful according to the expectations of the society.
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During the interview, Hoffman became choked with emotions and he had tears in his eyes. He says that though Tootsie was a big hit and a wonderful comedy for the world, it was never a comedy for him. The wonderful thoughts and emotions of Dustin Hoffman have been appreciated by millions of people and this interview has become viral on the internet. Let us hope this will mark a beginning for a change in our attitude towards beauty among women.
