21 lessons every Indian girl in her 20s should learn from Kangana Ranaut

Many of us have seen Kangana's recent interview with Barkha Dutt and whether or not she is guilty of assault or is deceit is for courts to decide. What millions of Indian girls must learn from her, however, is not about what is making headlines. Be it the controversy with Hrithik Roshan,  slut shaming to being called a witch and a psychopath, the three-time National Award winning actress has taken every tribulation thrown at her by life in her stride. Kangana’s unique and witty responses to all the slander during her recent interviews on India Today and NDTV have thrown light upon the challenges that every girl in India grows up with. Kangana's method of tackling or talking about these issues is simply awe-inspiring. Here are 21  life and personality goals that every Indian girl in her twenties should learn from Kangana Ranaut.

1. My being right doesn’t necessarily mean that you are wrong… if I break rules, it isn’t to prove that the conventional route doesn’t hold good just because a new formula worked.
2. In this country, sexually active women are called ‘whores’ and successful women having potential are considered to be ‘psychopaths’… I am okay with being called both. It doesn’t affect me.
3. I do not try to be better than only my male counterparts, I try to be better than everybody around me… one should compete for excellence in human spirit regardless of sex. We should not contend as man and woman, but as individuals.
4. I made sure I get equally paid for my work, on speaking about pay parity as compared to her male counterparts.
5.  I have always stood up for myself… never expected anybody to stand up for me, I can do it on my own.
6. You can’t help whom you fall for. You make certain choices at some point of time, and you might just fall out of the equation later. You don’t need to explain yourself for it.
7.  Women can kill with success and sarcasm, why use hands? I have soft hands and a sharp mind. You will also love Parineeti Chopra's inspiring message on body image and weight loss.
8. Why should Bollywood accept me? You should ask whether I have accepted Bollywood or not… yes, I have. And I do not care whether Bollywood has accepted me or not.
9. The recent turn of events have been way too overwhelming and unsettling for me. But I have always been prepared to face whatever life throws at me. Attempts have been made to destroy my career, but they are not working. It’s hard to come to terms with what has happened, but there are always cupcakes to be held.
10. The common male mentality is that if I can’t get you, I might as well destroy you… but I cannot pretend to be sorry for something I am not. Slut shaming won’t work.
11. I would rather prefer to get hurt by people than get cynical about them.
12. You can talk about my periods, but not call it gross… there’s nothing in my life that can put me to shame. 10 commonly asked questions about periods are answered here.
13. I obtain inspiration from things around me… the way I perceive life makes all the difference. It is hard for me to find any kind of shame or blame in my life… I speak about everything just like any other experience that I have been through- on abusive relationships.
14. ‘Why do we need to disown a witch? Don’t we all love Harry Potter? I have no problem with people calling me a witch. Suppression, witch hunting, name calling… these kind of events have brought forth a very dark side of the society to me… I have been called a psychopath, an Aspergers’ patient, and a witch who drinks blood, but I do not want to detach myself from these names because for way too long we women have been refusing to accept ourselves for being us. We don’t have to disown any of it anymore.
15. I will not be treated badly. I have not done anything that gives anyone the right to do so.
16. Envy has and shall always be there, but you don’t need to subject this sort of brutality onto somebody where you discuss sensitive personal matters in a sadistic fashion.
17. I am a very proud Hindu… but religious practices being given a sadistic name instills xenophobia, a feeling of being scared of another’s religious beliefs and way of life.
18. Why so much shame and blame on someone dealing with mental illness? What is so wrong about it? Using these terms sadistically as an accusation is not at all acceptable.
19. The turn of events have been very insightful, and I am very happy they happened to me… I learnt where we stand as a society- we don’t stand anywhere. We don’t respect our girls, we humiliate women for their periods- the power of reproduction itself.
20. It is high time that the age-old weapons used against women need to be diffused. The society is nobody to judge us by our mental or physical conditions, or the choices we make in life… the more powerful you become, the more potent these weapons become against you… accept it and move on, let’s see what’s next.
21.  I sometimes break down and cry and feel targeted for being myself… but I have no other choice!

Kangana, hats off to you for being the brutally honest and kickass lady you are. You go, girl! This is how the Hrithik-Kangana spat led to the male actor accusing her of suffering from Asperger's Syndrome. Watch it here:  

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