'Contractors don't talk to me properly because I am a woman': Parineeti Chopra on facing sexism

Parineeti Chopra is a well established Bollywood actor with films like ‘Ishqazaade’, ’The Girl On The Train’ and ‘Kesari’ to her name. One would imagine that a star like her would not be subjected to something like patriarchy and sexism. But the actor has revealed that she too has been a victim of the social evils of society.

While talking about her latest release ‘Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar’ - which got a second life with an OTT release last week - Parineeti says that women have to deal with sexism on a daily basis.

“This film is uniquely written. People have become so immune to the patriarchy that they don’t even think about it. Women in India face this every day. When I’m getting my house renovated, the contractors don’t talk to me properly because I’m a woman. They ask if there’s someone else at home they can talk to. I say, ‘No, I bought this house, I’ve made the payments. It’s mine so I will choose the tiles.’ When I tell them to talk to me, they refuse. This film has a lot of similarities to my personal life," she told Film Companion. 

Parineeti also shared an incident, where while shooting for a particular scene in the film, she was reminded of her childhood. She said, “I was reminded of the small town I grew up in, where the women weren’t allowed to eat till the men went to sleep. They couldn’t eat while the men were still seated at the dining table. Even at my house, my mother wasn’t allowed to sit and eat. It’s not that my father made her do this, but it was an unspoken rule in the house.”

While talking about her character (Sandy) in the film, Parineeti says that she and Sandy were trying to show how accepted patriarchy is in India and how much they wish for that to change.

Parineeti was last seen in the Saina Nehwal biopic, ‘Saina’. She will be next seen in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s ‘Animal’, alongside Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol.