New Delhi: Actor Nimrat Kaur Friday decried targeted violence and said a community does not stand for a bad individual and vice versa.
Relating the loss of her father, an Indian Army officer, to terrorism, Kaur said she could have been brought up with a lot of hate for the community of the people responsible, but that was not the case.
She made the comments in reference to Jammu and Kashmir, saying the Valley is “very close to my heart”. “It only pains me to see the land suffer and I really hope and pray that things resolve soon and the state comes to rest.”
Kaur was in conversation with Rohini Swamy, associate editor at ThePrint, at the first edition of Democracy Wall’s second season.
Democracy Wall is a free-speech campus initiative. The latest edition was held at the CMR College of Engineering & Technology in Hyderabad. Lok Sabha MP & AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, rapper Sofia Ashraf and IPS officer Rema Rajeshwari were the other participants at the event.
‘Don’t break under pressure’
An acclaimed actor who broke through with the 2013 sleeper hit The Lunchbox, Nimrat Kaur spoke about her entry into Bollywood with no contacts, and how the film opened doors for her.
“It is very important to stay true to who you are, what you want to do and what you don’t want to do and not break under the pressure and let outside forces put that seed of doubt in your head,” she said.
While talking about how the film industry is like to female actors, Kaur said the environment can be difficult for everyone regardless of gender. “I think it’s a very individual experience and I hope that every girl is strong enough inside to break the clutter and do what she wishes to.”
On cinema
Nimrat Kaur also strongly underlined the importance of responsible cinema and said movies should not project value systems that encourage misogyny and abuse.
According to her, equal responsibility lay with the actors as well. “No one is forcing you to do anything on set. It is as much my responsibility to be vigilant of what I’m saying and what is being said to me.”
Kaur added that the media needs to shine more light on regional cinema.
She also termed acting as the most democratic profession. “It’s the only profession where I get to play parts that I have not lived and be different citizens in one body. That’s a multi-democratic universe.”
Also read: It is up to actors to decide what issues they want to take stands on, says Nimrat Kaur