Priyanka Chopra bats for gender equality, criticizes media focus on Salman’s ‘rape’ remark

Priyanka Chopra recently launched UNICEF’s Fair Start Campaign, which aims at highlighting the cause of gender disparity in literacy. The actress, who has made a name for herself in international showbiz, says India is a difficult country and it will take time for things to change as far as the mindset towards women is concerned.

“India is a difficult country. It is like one whole world wherein each state has different traits, different culture, different language, different writing, different thought process and different religion. It [mindset towards women] is not going to be changed tomorrow,” she said on Tuesday. The actress shared her views about the stereotypes that women are subjected to when she became part of an event in New Delhi.

The session touched upon various issues like the gap between rich and poor, stereotypes that women face, and how more opportunities can be created so that everyone in the country gets a fair chance to prove their potential.

“We have forgotten humanity in this disparity. And we can overcome it by creating opportunity to include [the less privileged] in your life. Slowly you will make a difference. Opportunities should be created by the government, which they are, but government cannot change mindset. Change will come from within us,” said the National award-winning actress.

Asked to comment on how Indian women are still struggling to get their rights, Chopra said, “Since the time I remember, and it is not our country’s fault, the whole world treats women as second fiddle. It will take some time to change that. And the change can only come when all girls stand united and ask for their rights.”

The Mary Kom (2014) actress said the most important thing to do right now is that all “mothers should teach their sons to respect women”. She even urged the people of the country to give opportunities to girls so that they can show their calibre.

The media interaction also turned towards Salman Khan’s recent ‘rape’ remark. Chopra, however, refused to react. "First of all it was not a joke," she said. "At a forum on equality and empowerment of young children, why talk about callous remarks?”

She continued, “It's sad that the media chooses to focus on something that is not as important. Public responsibility for public people is an individual choice... I don't blame you for a callous question... I don't want to add to the clutter and would rather talk about more important issues. Not just film stars, but any public personality should have that sense of responsibility.” 

– With inputs from Cinestaan.com