Ananya Panday recently discussed how she integrates her professional work with her ethical and social values. The actress mentioned that even though she doesn’t talk about political matters, she is glad that her on-screen projects shed light on social issues. During her speech on women’s safety and empowerment at the India Today Mind Rocks Youth Summit 2024, Ananya reflected on the significant impact her work has in addressing women’s issues. (Also Read: Ananya Panday says every industry should have a panel like Hema Committee: ‘There are still huge battles to be fought’)
Ananya Panday on women empowerment and safety
Talking about the #MeToo issue highlighted in her new series Call Me Bay, Ananya said, “With great power comes great responsibility. It is very important for me to use my voice correctly. Sometimes, as an actress, I feel a little helpless because people say ‘don’t be too political or don’t say this’ but I have realised that when I work, it connects with my moral and social beliefs. For example, in Call Me Bay, I don’t want to give spoilers, but it delves into an area that stands for women, women empowerment and the #MeToo issue. It is something that I am not able to talk about a whole lot in real life for various reasons. But, if I can do that through my work, I think that has a big impact as well.”
She also added, “As an actor, I don’t think I would ever do something that goes against my beliefs as a human being, because I know what impact it has on people. Our country is easily influenced. I am very easily influenced. I understand that and that’s why it’s important to be aware of the work you do. I try to stay true to myself as much as possible. I am not one of those people who feel that one has to speak about everything. I think it’s very important to stand up for something. I know what’s important to me. Safety of women in our country is very important to me, so that’s something I am very vocal about. It’s important to know what’s important to you and do it the right way. Putting things into action is what matters the most.”
Ananya Pandey’s acting career
Ananya made her Bollywood debut with Student of the Year 2. She then worked in films like Khaali Peeli, Gehraiyaan, Dream Girl 2 and Kho Gaye Hum Kahan. Her first OTT show Call Me Bay was recently released on Prime Video. The comedy-drama series is co-written by Ishita Moitra, Samina Motlekar and Rohit Nair and directed by Collin D’Cunha. The show also stars Muskaan Jaffrey, Gurfateh Pirzada, Niharica Lyra Dutt, Varun Sood, Vihaan Samat, Vir Das, Mini Mathur, Riya Sen, Suchitra Pillai, Sayani Gupta, Karishma Tanna and others in pivotal roles. Call Me Bay is produced by Karan Johar, Apoorva Mehta and Somen Mishra under Dharmatic Entertainment.
Ananya Pandey’s upcoming projects
Ananya will next be seen in Vikramaditya Motwane’s thriller CTRL. The film also stars Devika Vatsa, Kamakshi Bhat, Suchita Trivedi, Samit Gambhir, Ravish Desai and Aparshakti Khurana. It is scheduled to release on Netflix on October 4, 2024. Ananya is also a part of Karan Singh Tyagi’s period-drama Shankara, starring Akshay Kumar and R Madhavan.
