Behold The Mango Meter-World’s First Feminist Film Review App

If you ever felt like calling out a movie for being too sexist but didn’t know a solid source to quote, now there’s an app that will help you prove your point! Sounds weird? Well, it isn’t. The world of cinema is replete with movies that are all about men, men and men. And no matter how many women-centric movies are made, most romantic movies, drama movies, action movies and comedy movies hardly have strong women characters in general. Seeing how movies influence popular culture which in turn affects perceptions, an Indonesian feminist online magazine decided that enough was enough. With the support of German non-profit organisation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Foundation’s political feminism programme in Asia, it launched the Mango Meter – a mobile app that rates movies on the basis of gender representation. The brains behind the app are of six women who have conceptualised it on the lines of the popular movie rating app Rotten Tomatoes but with a feminist lens.

What Is The Mango Meter App All About?

The Mango Meter team says, the “seventh art” is one of “the most effective media to spread norms and values in society,” and movies “largely reinforce gender and racial stereotyping, sexually objectify women, and normalise gender-based violence, as the film industry insists it is only meeting market demands.”

Who Are The People Behind The Mango Meter App?

The app is available on the Google Play store as well as on Apple Store for downloads on all kinds of devices. Here’s how the makers of the app describe it:

Mango Meter is a feminist film reviewing app developed by a group of angry, sexy, crazy and cool feminists from all across Asia: Chen Yi-Chien (Taiwan), Devi Asmarani (Indonesia), Medhavine Namjoshi (India), Meggan Evangelista (the Philippines). Sahar Gul (Pakistan) and Sharmee Hosain (Bangladesh), with the support of political foundation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung.

This app takes into account the diverse cultural reality of Asia as represented in movies. Films are one of the most powerful medium to propagate norms and values of a society, yet the existing movie offerings still largely reinforce gender and racial stereotyping, as the film industry insists they are only meeting market demands. By rating films on Mango Meter we can challenge the status quo and let the film industry know that we want better.

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How The Mango Meter Works?

The app rates movies by giving them mangoes instead of stars so a 5 Mangoes movie would be cinema that lauds feminism and is free from stereotyping of gender, races etc.

1 Mango: Yuck, this movie is misogynistic!

2 Mangoes: This is a sexist movie.

3 Mangoes: This movie is full of gender/racial and other stereotypes

4 Mangoes: Ok, this movie challenges many stereotypes.

5 Mangoes: Now, this is a feminist movie.

Medhavine Namjoshi, one of the women behind the app, expressed how women rarely feature off-screen in different roles of the film industry. While they are objectified blatantly on screen, we hardly see many women in the roles of cinematographers, directors, screenplay writers, producers and distributors. According to her, movies like Nil Battey Sannata, English Vinglish, Lipstick Under my Burkha, Margarita With a Straw, and Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To Asia Laga are some of the movies that come closer to being feminist.

Whether the Mango Meter app is able to change perception of people one rating at a time remains to be seen but the fact that we have an app like this in the first place speaks volumes about the change that’s already taking place. Her Zindagi congratulates such women and hopes that the fiery debate on gender equality is fuelled even further with some efforts! To read more stories that will enhance your perception on feminism, keep reading Her Zindagi and stay empowered.

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