Indian actor Vidya Balan said on Thursday that in her latest movie she portrays a female forest officer navigating not just through the wilderness of the jungle but also challenging patriarchy.

The movie "Sherni" starring 42-year-old Balan is set for release on Friday.

“This is not just a story set in the jungle. It is about the jungle,” Balan said in an interview with Reuters, adding how the landscape of a forest serves as a pretext to question sexist stereotypes from coworkers in Indian bureaucracy.

Balan plays a government forest officer leading a team of trackers and locals to capture an unsettled tigress while also facing sexism.

Balan, who made her Bollywood debut in 2005, is known for taking on films centred around strong female leads.

Movie theatres have suffered huge losses as India went into a second lockdown because of a devastating second wave of coronavirus infections.

Balan however, is optimistic, “I believe that this is a temporary phase and once things go back to normal then people will throng the theatres. I am very hopeful because I think that collective experience is very special and it’s unmatched.”