Akshay Kumar feels irritated when someone calls ‘Mission Mangal’ women-oriented

Akshay Kumar has often dealt with taboo topics such as menstrual health and women’s sanitation through his films. He is now attempting to break gender stereotypes with his next ‘Mission Mangal’ directed by Jagan Shakti. It will be releasing on August 15. The actor is offering us a real-life example to emphasize his point.

“There is a lady who manages the finances of her house, corporate finance and the finance of our country. She was in the Defence Ministry earlier. The change is happening,” said the actor referring to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. He said so at a promotional event of his upcoming film ‘Mission Mangal’ on Friday. Likewise, ‘Mission Mangal’ portrays the struggles of five women scientists who embark on a mission to send a satellite to Mars. The characters have been essayed by Vidya Balan, Sonakshi Sinha, Taapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari and Nithya Menen.

However, Akshay is unwilling to call ‘Mission Mangal’ a ‘women-oriented’ movie. He said, “I feel irritated when someone says it (a film) is a women-oriented subject. What do you mean by women-oriented? If we are equal, then there should not be anything as male-oriented or female-oriented, it should just be a film. That’s what I feel.”

Akshay also explained his intention behind choosing the subject. “I’ve made this film mainly for children so that they feel encouraged to become scientists. Scientist as a profession is not very likeable, but after ISRO’s launch of the Chandrayaan, people are becoming more aware of the need and importance of scientists. I hope this film conveys what a great profession it is,” he said.

He also emphasized on children having equal opportunities. “Right from my childhood, I’ve seen parents who discourage a girl if she aspires to be a scientist or an engineer on the excuse that these are male-dominated professions. Instead, they encourage the child to become a doctor or a nurse or choose any other woman-dominated profession. Even our history books do not tell us stories of women, rather they emphasise mostly on men. I think the time has come to change this and the process has already started,” he said.

Also Read: Sonakshi Sinha on Akshay Kumar’s prominence in ‘Mission Mangal’ poster: Jo bikta hai, voh dikhta hai