A law in India that banned women from working as make-up artists has been overturned, with a panel of Supreme Court judges saying, ‘We are in 2014, not in 1935’.
The huge Bollywood movie industry has for 59 years only officially been allowed to hire male make-up artists, while female make-up artsist who wanted to work on films had to use the title of hairdresser. These women were frequently doing make-up, but never got the proper credit for their work.
The Cine Costume Make-up Artists and Hair Dressers Association (CCMAA) actually petitioned the court to keep the male-only classification for make-up artists, arguing that it protected the men’s jobs. The Association was taken to court by several make-up artists who were denied union cards to work in the make-up category.
‘How can this discrimination continue? We will not permit this. It cannot be allowed under our constitution. Why should only a male artist be allowed to put make-up? How can it be said that only men can be make-up artists and women can be hairdressers?’ said judges Justices Dipak Misra and UU Lalit.
The union was warned to delete the sexist clause, and to do it now.
‘You better delete this clause on your own. Remove this immediately. We are in 2014, not in 1935. Such things cannot continue even for a day,’ said the judges panel. ‘There are industries only in a few states and the government should have taken a stand by now. But we will do it ourselves now.’
Picture: Getty
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.