Neena Gupta says ‘if women do a job, they are raped’: 'It is a curse to be born a...'

Neena Gupta, known for her portrayal in projects like Badhaai Ho, Panchayat & others, garnered headlines when she described feminism as a ‘faltu’ concept and said that ‘women need men’ in an earlier interview, which led to severe criticism. However, in her latest interview, she expressed her opinion on ‘feminism’ and how women are treated in the country.

“For me, feminism is being strong (on the inside). That is feminism for me. Me,” Neena said while talking to Lilly Singh. When asked what she wants for women in the country, the actress replied, “What I want is not possible. I want them to be safe, but it’s not possible. They say educate women. If you educate them, they will want to do a job, and if they do a job, they are raped… I feel it is a curse to be born a woman, especially a poor woman. The situation is so sad, I have goosebumps. How can I say optimistic things, when I know the real situation? It’s a curse. What happens to women in jhuggi-jhopdis? I want a solution, but I can’t think of a solution.”

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During her appearance in Ranveer Allahbadia’s podcast, Neena had said, “I want to say that it’s not necessary to believe in ‘faltu feminism’ or the idea that ‘women are equal to men.’ Instead, focus on achieving financial independence and giving attention to your work. If you’re a housewife, don’t look down on it; it’s an important role. Boost your self-esteem and avoid thinking of yourself as small. That’s the main message I want to convey. Additionally, men and women are not equal. The day men start getting pregnant, that day we will be equal.”

The actress later clarified her statement and said that the particular chunk was used from the whole interview to create controversy. “What they did is that they only used that chunk from the whole interview for promotions, to create a controversy. It said that I don’t believe in ‘faltu feminism’, and after that people are fighting amongst each other. If one person is cursing me for saying that, someone else says, ‘What do you know? Watch the whole interview’. There should be a reference to what I said,” Gupta told Indian Express.