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Kareena Kapoor Khan Opens Up About Her Privilege And Nepotism In Bollywood

byNikita Manot
4th August 2020
2 minute read

From Sushmita Sen to Abhay Deol and Janhvi Kapoor, a varied number of Bollywood celebrities have openly spoken about nepotism ever since Sushant’s untimely demise. And now weighing in on the on-going debate, Kareena Kapoor Khan, a fourth-generation actor, has shared her thoughts on the criticism faced by those from film families.

In a recent interview, the ‘Jab We Met’ actor said that rather than understanding the situation, people have directly switched to attack mode. She mentioned how we need to look at the ‘larger picture’ instead of looking at everyone from a privileged background in a negative light, reports HT. Citing her own example, she was quoted saying,

“21 years of working would not have happened with just nepotism. It is not possible. I can take a long list out of superstars’ children for whom it’s not been able to happen that way.”

Kareena said that her journey is not just about having gotten opportunities just because of her lineage but also about her hard work. She added,

“It might sound weird but my struggle is there. There is a struggle but it probably is not as interesting as somebody who comes in a train with just Rs 10 in his pocket. Yeah, it’s not been that and I can’t be apologetic about it.” 

According to her, the audience has the power to make or break a star. She said no one can survive in the industry just because of nepotism. She even mentioned actors like Akshay Kumar and Shah Rukh Khan who have made it big in the industry despite being outsiders, reports News18.

She said, “The audience has made us, nobody else has made us. The same people pointing fingers, they are only making these nepotistic stars. Aap jaa re ho na film dekhne? Mat jao (You are going to watch the films, right? Don’t go). Nobody has forced you. So I don’t understand it. I find this whole discussion is completely weird.”

Kareena said that kids coming from film families also have to work hard just like outsiders. “The idea is that today so many of our biggest stars whom you (the audience) have chosen, whether it is Akshay Kumar or Shah Rukh Khan or Ayushmann Khurrana or Rajkummar Rao, are all outsiders. They are successful actors because they have worked hard. Whether it is Alia Bhatt or Kareena Kapoor, we have also worked hard. You are enjoying our films and watching them. So, it’s the audience that makes or breaks us.”

However, actor Kangana Ranaut alleged that Kareena’s success was “undeserving.”

Well, nobody can really undermine a person’s struggles unless they’ve walked in their shoes. What do you think? Tell us!

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