When we have an elder sister who has been successful in her endeavours, people also have the same expectation from us. The pressure of matching up to her success always makes one anxious.
Well, Kareena Kapoor Khan’s success was initially measured by the success of her star-sibling Karishma Kapoor. From being called the sister of a 90’s star Lolo, to making it big in Bollywood, it wasn’t easy for Kareena.
Speaking of which, Bebo said in an interview with HT, “Actually my parents have been very supportive and much more when it came to me. I think a lot of people still looked at me as Lolo’s sister which I am extremely proud of. I think whatever I am has a lot to do with Lolo as well.
“But I had my own struggle when it came to breaking that image too. I had the pressure of coming from this family, the pressure of being Lolo’s sister. People were like will she be as successful as Lolo, as good as her.”
“But I had my own share of struggle which people usually brush under the carpet. The perception is star children don’t have their own share of struggles.”
Talking about the struggles of being on the heavier side when people expected heroines to look a certain way, the ‘Chameli’ actor divulged, “I was very happy in my size and body. I was chubby even in my first film and I liked it.”
“I was like, listen, I love my parathas, I am a typical Punjabi kudi. I love it and I can’t be any other way. Also, I am here for my talent, I want to sell my talent. I am not here for anything here.”
“But then the pressure took over. People were like she’s good but will she look good in glamorous roles. That had to be there then. Eventually, that glamourous thing has to take over.”
Speaking about the unrealistic beauty standards that women in the society have to match up with, the ‘Udta Punjab’ actor said, “Now, especially with Instagram and people having their beach bikini body, people are wilting in pressure. We have forgotten the meaning of life.” Opening up about pay disparity in Bollywood, she added:
“I did demand a certain fee and I don’t think there is anything wrong in it. You put in equal amount of time and effort so obviously, you want to get what you think you deserve and once you constantly prove it there’s nothing wrong in demanding a certain amount.”
“Now there is a lot of discussion about pay disparity but when I said it earlier, no one really paid attention to it. And it so happened that I demanded something and I have been replaced. There have been times but it is just that you don’t hear about it.”
Speaking about her struggle to battle the image of a diva, the ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham’ actor said, “I have always battled this image of being a diva. I don’t know from where it started, probably it started with Poo and it ended there only. That’s the way people always imagine me. So, now I think people understand that’s not the way life is, it is not always just a bed of roses. It annoyed me initially, but now I’m unaffected with the diva tag,” she signed off.
You can watch the full video here:
Kareena recently made her debut on Instagram and has so far shared pictures of her family.
She was last seen in ‘Angrezi Medium’, a sequel to the 2017 film ‘English Medium’.