International Women’s Day 2022: Aly Goni, Ayush Anand & Aparna Dixit talk about importance of gender equality

International Women’s Day is celebrated every year on 8th March. The day celebrates the cultural, political and socio-economical achievements of women and girls all over the world. The theme for this year is gender equality and some popular celebrities shared their view on gender equality. 

Bigg Boss 14 fame Aly Goni shared, “I think it's time we took gender equality seriously. I know we have progressed a lot but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in this area. I feel gender equality doesn't only mean having equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities, it's also to do with providing a safe environment for women to have an easy life without any fears or worries. We are in the year 2022, and during these difficult times, gender equality shouldn't even be a topic of discussion anymore. As far as gender equality in the industry is concerned, I feel that the entertainment industry is the first to take a step forward in the positive direction in this matter. Be it the content based on women or shows and films led by women, we have evolved a lot, and have set a benchmark for the audience too. The Indian audience is greatly influenced by the industry and from what we show on-screen, it has surely had a positive impact on them. We are all actors now, there is nothing like actors and actresses.”

Perfect Pati fame actor Ayush Anand said, “Well, I have always worked under women since childhood. From my teachers in school and college to my acting school days in Barry John acting school and even during my call centre days, I have always been taught/trained by or reported to women. So my upbringing has never allowed me to differentiate between genders. I believe one’s experience, knowledge and skills are always more important than gender. There have been many successful women directors, CEOs, doctors, scientists, engineers from time to time and this legacy will always continue. Having said that, progress still needs to be made as child marriages, especially in the case of very young girls, are still prevalent. There are certain areas where gender discrimination exists and this needs to be eradicated and that can only be done by allowing the girl child education and freedom to choose her career. I believe we are moving in the right direction as a country and things are getting better with every passing day. And as far as the television industry is concerned, I must say that it is dominated and ruled by women and rightfully so. From producers to protagonists and even major sections of the audiences are women.”

Bepanah Pyaar actress Aparna Dixit said, “Yes, talking about gender equality things have changed. I think over the last few years we have seen a considerable amount of change when it comes to payments of males and females have come out and they demand equal pay for their talent because talent doesn't see any gender differentiation. People have actually started considering female requests as well. I won't say it has completely changed. They're slowly gradually trying to become equal. If we talk about our industry especially, it has always been a male dominant industry for a very long time.  Slowly and gradually things are changing. Now we make more films, not equal films but some films are female-centric, but there are so many heroes that have been just going on and on. If we talk about female artists, the heroines of the films, their generations keep changing. One generation of actors has actually worked with 3 generations of actresses. That needs to change. I'm really thankful to the web series now for bringing such amazing artists like Madhuri Dixit back on screen. On the other hand Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, they've always been there as the leading faces and now Raveena Tondon is having a comeback. But why come back? Why cant she be just there all the time like how the male artists have always been there at the same time handling their houses, family, children. But there are a few actors, Kareena Kapoor who I would say who has been trying to make that balance. She has never vanished.  She has always been trying different things and I see the same thing in Deepika Padukone as well. So yes things are changing but still, we have a long way to go. Even a small change, a little success, is a success. I think it's very important for both males and females to have that confidence from within that they're equal. As an actor when I was small I would see all these male actors constantly getting work whereas the females don't. So in a way, it does affect the way we start thinking for our own selves and that needs to change. But I'm very proud of the women who have taken that step forward, talking about apart from the industry, I heard this news a few days back, about Nykaa's owner being the first female to achieve such a big goal. So yes females are coming forward and we have examples that we can take and get influenced from. We can always motivate ourselves, inspire us and we should just keep moving forward.”

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