Film is vehicle to change India's misogynistic culture: Indian director

Confronting misogyny through film could change the culture in India, an Indian director has said.

Speaking ahead of the opening of Melbourne's Indian Film Festival on Thursday, Leena Yadav, whose film Parched will open the festival, said the film is about promoting discussion around India's attitude towards women.

"Parched is my reaction to a misogynistic society that treats women as objects of sex, where their greatest role is to serve men," Yadav was quoted by ABC on Thursday.

"It's about conditioning and norms that we have passed on generation after generation without questioning their validity today and how each of us are very, very conditioned to behave in a certain way," Yadav said.

"So reactions to a film like this, good, bad or ugly is good, because that's what will create a discussion discussion and dialogue is definitely the beginning of change.

"It's taken so many decades to condition us, it's going to take a while to change it, but I think every small step in that direction is positive."

The Indian Film Festival begins on Thursday and runs for 10 days with the focus being on films starring and directed by females.

"This theme was an obvious choice for us with so many of this year's films portraying strong and vibrant female characters," festival director Mitu Bhowmick-Lange said.

"The female directors turn the focus on inequality and liberation."

An estimated 35,000 people will attend screenings of the 50 films featured in the festival. Endit