A small-town, burqa-clad college girl dreams of pop stardom; an unfaithful beautician wants excitement; a housewife becomes a saleswoman; a 55-year-old widow has phone sex with a young swimming coach. These are the rebellions in “Lipstick Under My Burkha”, a film by Alankrita Shrivastava that at last came out yesterday. Censors had refused to certify the “lady-oriented” film, citing the “contagious” nature of its sex scenes, its “abusive words” and its “audio pornography”. Some critics worry about the stereotyping of freedoms depicted—smoking and lipstick, for example—but the film has been roundly applauded for confronting the inequalities and abuses that Indian women face. More than half of women think it normal for a husband to beat his wife should she venture out without telling him; government data indicate that a third of women under 50 have experienced violence. Perhaps the forthrightness of the film’s protagonists will prove contagious, too.