What’s Welcome To The Jungle got right? According to Raveena Tandon, two things at least. Director Ahmed Khan’s ensemble comedy embraces its absurdity unapologetically. It also offers its female actors the opportunity to be an active part of the slapstick comedy. 

“We’ve evolved from the era when the heroine’s only job in a comedy was to look pretty and act shocked at the hero’s antics,” laughed Tandon, pointing out that Welcome To The Jungle — that stars Disha Patani, Lara Dutta, and her alongside Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, and others — doesn’t follow that trope.

“The biggest change is agency. Female characters aren’t just reacting to the plot anymore; their choices and blunders move the story forward.”

Even as the small changes are appreciated, Tandon asserted that there is still a long way to go. “Actresses today are brilliant at self-deprecation and physical comedy, yet writers hesitate to give them the outright hilarious roles, slapstick, or absurd lines. We are still cast as the voice of reason reacting to the funny men. Films like ChaalBaaz [1989] or Andaz Apna Apna [1994] are etched into cinematic history because the women were devastatingly funny. There is still a lingering hesitation to back a mainstream comedy spearheaded by women.”

Tandon’s three-decade filmography includes several popular comedies, from Andaz Apna Apna to Dulhe Raja (1998) and Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (1998). This time, it was the film’s absurdity that made her say yes.

“[Some] critics ask, ‘Where is the logic?’ But comedy has often been about the joy of absurdity — look at the works of Mel Brooks, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy, or Jim Carrey. If someone is looking for logic in a film meant to be an escape, they are missing the genre’s purpose,” she stated.