'Every human is a feminist'

Aditi Rao Hydari says she does not understand why the idea of feminism is taken negatively as she believes every normal human being should be a feminist.

The 30-year-old actor, who was honoured with the ‘Youth Icon of the Decade’ award by the Women Economic Forum recently, says women make 50 per cent of the world population. “Every normal person today should be a feminist. Being a feminist should be considered normal.”

“The fact that women make half the world should be respected. Every human is a feminist and if they are not, something is wrong with them. It should be in the upbringing and not looked upon as something unusual,” Aditi said. The actor believes it is important for women to be financially independent as it is one of the prime steps towards self-empowerment.

“Financial independence is very important. It gives you the confidence to believe that you don’t have to depend on anybody practically. When you start working and earning your money, it gives you a thrill. The fact that I am not answerable to anybody empowers me,” she says.

Aditi will next be seen in Omung Kumar’s ‘Bhoomi’. The movie also marks Sanjay Dutt’s comeback. She will also be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Padmavati’ and she hopes the team does not face any roadblocks in future.

“I am blessed to be working on this film. I hope and pray that (we face) no difficulty now. Sanjay sir creates cinematic experience and we should be proud of him and not try and curb him,” Aditi said.

Earlier this year, members of Rajput Karni Sena had stalled shooting of the film and vandalised the sets in Jaipur for allegedly representing ‘distorted facts’ in the movie. The film’s set was again attacked and put on fire in Kolhapur in March. “We should give him a platform to make films in peace as he makes beautiful movies,” she added.