Kangana’s swipe at Karan Johar: Look at my talent and look at his movies

(NOTE: This article was published in the INDIA TODAY edition dated March 18, 2019)

At the India Today Conclave 2019, Kangana Ranaut spoke frankly about her relationship with the film industry, of how her directorial debut Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi went fairly unacknowledged by her peers and how, after the Pulwama attack, her instinctive reaction was to grab a gun and head for the border. Thankfully, she stuck to what she does best. Winner of three National Awards, Kangana doesn’t feel “left out” in Bollywood. “I really feel like I stand out.”

A rule-breaker, not a follower
“I am probably the only actress to have never worked with a big production house. I am successful on my own,” said Kangana, one of the highest paid actresses in Bollywood, an industry she describes as ‘classist’.

The Kangana-Karan feud
On comments made by director Karan Johar recently at an awards function about her being “jobless”, Kangana said: “He will never be where I am... I mean look at my talent and look at his movies.”

Controlling her own narrative
Ranaut’s next directorial venture is a biopic on herself. “It’s not an exposé on the industry. It’s about my struggle,” she said, adding that every episode of her life—including her alleged relationship with Hrithik Roshan, consistently denied by the actor—will feature in the film, in which she will play herself.

On feminism
“It is a very misunderstood word,” said Kangana, who doesn’t follow the dictionary definition of feminism. “Why should there only be equality of gender and not all aspects of life? Definitions evolve; we need to find a new one for feminism.”

Bollywood vs Kangana
She wishes the industry would let her “do her thing”. “It’s not like I wake up every day wondering who I can offend today,” she said. “I wake up wondering how I can pave my path amid others.”

(The article was published in the INDIA TODAY edition dated March 18, 2019)

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