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Kajol caught in a storm of criticism for saying actors endure more stress than office workers
Highlights:
- The actress defended her claim that acting demands more than desk jobs in a recent interview.
- She said office workers can "chill out" during work hours, unlike film stars.
- Fans and working professionals called her comments privileged and out of touch.
- The backlash started after her appearance on Amazon Prime's Two Much with Kajol & Twinkle.
- Critics pointed out the financial gap and support systems actors have compared to regular employees.
Kajol probably didn't expect this reaction when she sat down with Twinkle Khanna on Two Much. But her comments about actors working harder than people with 9-to-5 jobs have blown up, and not in a good way.
Fans slam Kajol after she says actors work harder than regular employees sparking online outrage Getty Images
The comments that started it all
Kajol was speaking out about her earlier comments on Two Much with Kajol & Twinkle on Amazon Prime, where she said actors work harder than most people. This time she was explaining why she thinks that.
She told The Hollywood Reporter India that her days are full of shoots, events, and very early flights. One day involved waking at 5 AM to catch a flight to Jaipur for a 3 PM event.
But it was her take on regular jobs that got people talking. She claimed desk workers don't need to be "100% present" and can take breaks, "chill out," and relax while working. She kept coming back to the unending scrutiny actors face like the feeling of always being watched or something as simple as how you cross your legs or who's snapping a picture in the background becomes a constant calculation. You have to be switched on, she insisted, all the time.
The internet wasn't buying it
The internet, frankly, was having none of it. YouTube and Reddit exploded with responses. "For the kind of remuneration actors are paid, they shouldn't have a problem working 12 hours a day for 4 days a week," one user wrote. Another pointed out that films typically take 3-4 months to shoot, while regular jobs run year-round.
The responses got more pointed. "Vanity mein naps or massages bhi toh hum lete hain," a Reddit user commented, referencing the comfort of vanity vans. Someone else joked: "If you work poorly, you get fired. If you act poorly, you get a Filmfare award."
The bluntest response yet? "Respectfully, Kajol, shut up."
from BollyBlindsNGossip
Why the comparison falls flat
Nobody denies acting is demanding. Long hours, public pressure, and constant judgement are very real. But comparing it to regular employment ignores some major differences.
Most people work 12 months a year with two weeks' holiday if they're lucky. They don't have spot boys fetching drinks or vanity vans for rest breaks. One netizen nailed it: "A working parent's schedule is continuous, every single day, with no wrap-up party or off-season."
Online erupts as Kajol defends claim that acting demands more than everyday 9-to-5 workGetty Images
There's also the money. While her fee for a single film is probably more than most people earn in a year, she says that doesn’t make the work easy. Still, it does provide a comfort that regular employees don’t have. Kajol has not yet replied to the backlash.
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Actor Aziz Ansari, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by a woman with whom he went on a date last year, has responded to the claims saying the two engaged in "sexual activity, which by all indications was completely consensual".
The 34-year-old actor's statement comes after a 23-year-old Brooklyn-based photographer recounted a date with him that she called "the worst night of my life" in an interview with Babe.net.
"In September of last year, I met a woman at a party. We exchanged numbers. We texted back and forth and eventually went on a date.
"We went out to dinner, and afterwards we ended up engaging in sexual activity, which by all indications was completely consensual," Ansari said in a statement given to People magazine.
The Master of None actor further said a text by the woman, named as 'Grace' in the article, said that she felt uneasy with how things transpired the night before and responded to her privately as he was "concerned" about her.
"The next day, I got a text from her saying that although 'it may have seemed okay,' upon further reflection, she felt uncomfortable. It was true that everything did seem okay to me, so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned. I took her words to heart and responded privately after taking the time to process what she had said," he said.
Ansari, who became the first man of Asian descent to win Golden Globe recently for his performance in the Netflix show, added he supported the movement that has given women a chance to speak up about the injustice they have been subjected to till date.
"I continue to support the movement that is happening in our culture. It is necessary and long overdue," he said.
In the interview, the woman vividly described how she exchanged numbers with Ansari at the 2017 Emmy Awards after- party and went on a date with him on a bar on the banks of the Hudson river, which escalated quickly to a sexual encounter at his apartment.
The woman said she voiced her hesitation explicitly during their encounter.
She said she "used verbal and non-verbal cues to indicate how uncomfortable and distressed she was". The woman added that her reticence to engage in the act was "ignored" by the actor.
Grace alleged Ansari called her a cab when she wanted to leave and texted her the next day.
She shared a screenshot of the alleged conversation, in which she said, "Last night might've been fun for you, but it wasn't for me. You ignored clear non-verbal cues; you kept going with advances."
To this the actor allegedly replied, "I'm so sad to hear this. All I can say is, it would never be my intention to make you or anyone feel the way you described. Clearly, I misread things in the moment and I'm truly sorry."
Grace said she decided to come forward with the incident after she saw Ansari wearing a Time's Up pin at the Golden Globe Awards last week, where he won best comedy actor in a TV series.
"It took a really long time for me to validate this as sexual assault. I was debating if this was an awkward sexual experience or sexual assault. And that's why I confronted so many of my friends and listened to what they had to say, because I wanted validation that it was actually bad," she said in the interview.