News 18's Rising India Summit: Kangana Ranaut says being truly fearless has come with a price of its own

Kangana Ranaut was among the speakers at News 18's Rising India Summit on 17 March, 2018. In a discussion which ranged from her stand on nepotism to being truly fearless, Ranaut shared her thoughts eloquently.

Kangana Ranaut. Image from Twitter/@CNNNews18

Addressing the most popular debate of 2017 which took the film industry by storm, Ranaut said that her comments on nepotism were just an observation. "I am not some activist. For me, it was just an observation. It became a national debate because everyone had it in their sub-conscious mind. I was the catalyst because I said it on a popular talk-show."

She says that if you are an outsider, it's difficult to survive in the industry as you don't know the way things work. She said that the world is the way it is and everyone should be prepared for it. Ranaut has always been vocal about the realities of the entertainment business and believes that it's her duty to put things as they are for those who are aiming to crack Bollywood. At the discussion, she said that Karan Johar cannot be asked to not cast whoever he wished to in his films. Everyone has the right to make a choice. Therefore, people should not complain about the struggle. "There is a Karan Johar who exists and there is a Kangana Ranaut, too," she quipped.

Addressing the controversy around Swara Bhasker's letter about Padmaavat, she took a strong stand against the shaming she faced for sharing her thoughts. "Swara Bhasker is a legitimate artist and she has the right to express her opinion," said Ranaut. She also said that there are multiple women who have important stories to tell and it is society's failure when stories like these are not allowed to be voiced in the open.

Ranaut is an inspiration to a lot of Indian women not only because of the roles she portrays on screen but also because of often being seen as truly fearless. She said that her fearlessness has come with a cost; people have started distancing her from their circles and are noticeably careful around her.

Ranaut's life was under immense media scrutiny when her involvement with Hrithik Roshan came out in the open. Ranaut said that her bad experiences have molded her and she has moved on.

Although she maintained that she doesn't need the paper and isn't attuned to the country's politics, she discussed politics intently. The actress declared that she is a big Modi fan right off the bat and that his victory is also the victory of democracy.  She said she doesn't believe in religion and has come to the conclusion that her only identity is the fact that she is Indian. Standing for the national anthem, siding with the Indian army and standing up for the nation are her top priorities, she stated. On the Pakistani artist ban, Ranaut said that the artistic realm should not take over physical boundaries. India has its soldiers stationed at the border and that should not be overlooked.