To follow up on a previous post about an Deepa Mehta’s new film portraying domestic violence, I wanted to examine some of the other films in mainstream popular culture that have portrayed domestic violence.

Has there been a move in cinema to cover up the issues around domestic violence and the emotional, physical and mental trauma that it creates?

Think about movies such as Farah Fawcett’s The Burning Bed (1984), Jennifer Lopez’s Enough (2002), Julia Robert’s Sleeping with the Enemy or my personal favorite, Fried Green Tomatoes (1991).

Other than The Burning Bed, these movies were not controversial – the audience accepted that physical violence against another person was wrong. But there was something missing – the engagement with the viewer was missing – what can YOU do about domestic violence if you see it. Do you know what the signs are? Are there signs? Could you help? Would you help?

That is the beauty of the Bell Bajao campaign, trying to bring the audience into the dialogue and let the audience know that they are part of the solution, or else they become part of the silent problem.