Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 3, 2018)

While the West is on the road to women empowerment in the wake of ‘me too’ and ‘time’s up’ movement, Kareena Kapoor is doing her bit in B-town. The actress is set to shoot a video for a campaign titled ‘And I Rise’, an ode to iconic American author-activist Maya Angelou’s three-part series, And I Still Rise, a compilation of poems on phenomenal women and their determination to rise above difficulty and discouragement.

The video will see Kareena share screen space with four exemplary women from other walks of life — activist Bharti Gehani, a paraplegic badminton player, transgender model Anjali Lama, plus-size model make-up artist Kritika Gill and rapper Sofia Ashraf, whose song “Don’t Work for Dow” criticized the international conglomerate’s failure to compensate victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy, and “Kodaikanal Won’t” in 2015 addressed mercury poisoning in Kodaikanal caused by a thermometer factory.

“This unique campaign is all about rising above the ordinary while continuing to be confident, elegant and, most importantly, a working woman,” Kareena told Mirror.

The five women will be styled by Anita Dongre and Kareena says that the fashion designer’s ideas are in sync with her personality. “Since we will be shooting later this month with the video marking the onset of summer, the clothes will be fun, bright and wearable,” Kareena signs off.


L to R: Anjali Lama, Bharti Gehani, Kritika Gill, Sofia Ashraf