When BJP vice-president Smriti Z. Irani took centre stage at the recent Ficci-Flo session in the city, everyone listened with rapt attention. Especially when the audience was reminded that Indian television’s most famous bahu was not just an actress once but also a Miss India finalist in 1997.
Smriti took the plunge into politics in 2003, when she was at the peak of her career with her portrayal of Tulsi in Ekta Kapoor’s popular TV soap Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. “Even though my grandfather was a swayamsevak and my mother a Jan Sangh volunteer, my entry into politics was looked down upon by many due to my entertainment background. But let me tell you, a woman is never judged by her lipstick, sari or jewellery. A leader takes you where he wants you to be, but a woman takes you where you ought to be. And that’s one reason politics is the place for women,” she said.
Speaking about the Delhi gangrape incident, the mother of two said, “My daughter was 9 at that time. She would see me getting stressed and snapping over the phone with people who were taking the issue lightly. She came to me and said, ‘Don’t worry about me. I go to school in a bus and if anyone ever misbehaves, I’ll tell you first’. I was stunned. After the incident, it was more about a child’s innocence being lost for ever.”
“Did you know that the government has assigned Rs 209 crore for the rehabilitation of rape victims? But the money isn’t being used because the Central and State governments are fighting over who gets the credit for it! Issues like this anger me more,” she pointed out.
As the session came to a close, Smriti joked by saying, “I’m glad that nobody asked me about Tulsi. But I remember a man once came with his wife and said, ‘Teach her to be more like Tulsi’, and the lady had a frown on her face.”
She went on to add, “A woman can only be like Tulsi if she has a husband like Mihir and a son like Karan; that’s how Shantiniketan is made. Since the focus is now on the role of women, they should step forward and make use of opportunities.”
