Feminity has nothing to do with feminism:Sonam.

I've always found the proverb "May you live in interesting times" particularly interesting. The origins of the phrase may be debatable, but the intent behind it isn't. May you live in interesting times is a curse in disguise...meant to wish a period of instability and upheaval upon the person it is aimed at.

I for one, thrill in the fact that you and I live in interesting times. We live in a time marked with instability and upheaval and as a proud and unapologetic feminist, I'm thankful for that everyday because stability would mean regressing to the time when women's place', in the household, in the workplace and in the world was determined by the narrow prejudicial constructs of the society and those who claimed to be it's vanguards.

I have been extremely vocal about my feminist beliefs and my support for the often-alienated LGBTQ community. There have been more than a few times when this vociferousness has cost me a movie or some other professional gig. And you know what I think about that? I think that's just too bad. Because talking about women's rights and supporting the disenfranchised is not a cause' that I've chosen to align' myself with. I couldn't be happier that Feminism is receiving more air-time and editorial-space than ever before. But Feminism is not simply a viral phenomenon' and equal rights and opportunity in all spheres of life is NOT a fad'! Feminism is a belief system. It's the way I've been brought up, the way I think, the way I approach the world, and the only way of living that makes any sense to me.

When I started out in the industry, almost a decade ago, I was hopelessly unprepared...for the demands of my work, for the ways of the industry, for the fierce competition, for the subtle discriminations and the glaring stereotypes. There's so much I didn't understand about the world and there's so much I still struggle with, but several years and many faux pas later, here's what I can tell you:

1. The only person that should determine your worth is you. Not your colleagues, not your boss, not your loved ones. Only you.
2. Principles & beliefs are worth fighting for. Every single time. At all costs.
3. The length of your skirt, the color of your hair, the number of children that you (don't) want, your decision to not marry, the gender of your life-partner... Your choices make you who you are. And who you are is more than enough...it's all you'll ever need.
4. Read, read some more, and then read again! There's nothing more damaging to the growth of a society than uninformed, ignorant minds.
5. Femininity has nothing to do with Feminism; one is a wardrobe-choice, the other a belief-system. Frilly dress or a tuxedo, bold red lips or a bald head, leather or lace, we'll all feminists if we believe in equal rights!

Women like Kristen Bell, Emma Watson and Beyonc have long used their celebrity to inspire and empower women to rise up and take what's rightfully theirs. Why can't we embrace that spirit here? Why can't we grow beyond petty comparisons and rating systems to fight for the real issues?...Gender wage gap is very real and is worth fighting for. Equal opportunity is not a new-age mantra, it is our birthright. There is so much us women have to fight for. And that's precisely why a woman cannot be another's enemy; we have to be supportive of each other so we can all progress! We face enough body-shaming, stereotyping, discrimination & labeling as it is. Let's not contribute to it. Bringing someone else down is no way of boosting yourself up.

I guess what I'm trying to do, really desperately, and especially because it's Women's Day, is to demystify and un-romanticize the specter that feminism has become. Feminism is not a movement, and a Feminist is not a tree-hugging, jhola-wearing, bespectacled, short-haired, man-hating, bra-burning individual. A feminist is simply someone who respects the choice of an individual to lead her/his life the way she/he sees fit. And when you see it for the simple philosophy that it is, it's hard to understand why anyone would choose to be anything other than a feminist!

#IWD2017

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