Ratna Pathak recently reflected on her memories while growing up in a family where people didn't accept a girl child.
Actress Ratna Pathak Shah recently got candid about growing up in a sociologically mixed environment. She revealed that while some of her family was progressive, some still believed and followed patriarchal norms. The actress recalled she only had male cousins and grew up among women, which not only shaped her thinking but also how she viewed certain behaviours.
Ratna Pathak recently attended the FICCI Flo event in Hyderabad. During the event, the actress recalled how her grandmother was upset and wept when her sister, Supriya, was born. She revealed that her grandma was unhappy about another girl child joining the family. Ratna shared that the latter's expression outraged her. She was quoted as saying:
"Having two sons of my own was a very entertaining and unusual experience, one that I wasn’t quite prepared for. I remember feeling very resentful about the special privileges that boys were supposed to get. I remember my paternal grandmother crying loudly when my sister was born. 'Haye haye doosri beti aagayi.' And I remember feeling terrible about that."
However, she found solace in her father's response. She added that her father was completely opposite of her grandmother, which brought her some peace in the chaos. Ratna Pathak further shared how her father's reaction gave her hope. She revealed that he was extremely proactive. She was quoted as saying:
"He was extremely proactive about objecting to that. There is Punjabi tradition where they distribute a certain sweet when a boy is born and a different sweet when a girl is born. He distributed the sweets meant to celebrate a boy's birth even though a girl had been born in the family. It was like an affirmation of acceptance."
Ratna Pathak also addressed the difference in treatment that a boy is given and a girl is given. She added that she found her grandmother to be extremely offensive and wondered why girls are so unwelcomed. She further shared that these patriarchal norms have existed for thousands of years, and while we hope for them to change, it won't happen overnight. She was quoted as saying:
"Why should a girl's existence be so unwelcome? I realised that it starts in the families. The way that boys are treated in families is significantly different, even in educated, upper-class families."
In an earlier interview with Hauterrfly, Ratna admitted that she perhaps wasn't an ideal sister to Supriya. She shared that they were extremely different from each other, yet there was a sense that there was someone like her. She acknowledged that she was not a good sister to Supriya and accepted that she bullied her a lot.
What are your thoughts on Ratna Pathak's revelation?
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