She has been a vegetarian all her life, and Karishma Tanna Bangera has no plans to change that. On World Vegetarian Day today, she says it’s a conscious choice to not give in to eating non-vegetarian food.

“I am a Gujarati, but I have seen some of us turning non-vegetarian too. I am happy and proud to be a vegetarian,” she asserts.

The 39-year-old also busts the myth that it’s necessary to eat non-vegetarian food to have a good physique. “My trainer said what a vegetarian and a non-vegetarian person can do in the gym has a vast difference. I would have less strength compared to them. But I am okay with that. I do feel a little change in energy, but there are lentils and soya, which are good sources of protein. I am happy, I feel lighter,” says the Scoop actor.

But food preferences might go for a toss when travelling abroad or shooting at a place where veg options are minimal. Ask how she navigates that and Karishma says she opts for whatever is available, which is usually not the healthiest: “I take my theplas along. I love home-cooked food. I don’t eat theplas from morning to evening though. When I am out the entire day while vacationing in places like Spain or other European countries, where only 10% of the menu is vegetarian, you have to choose from that. So basically, French fries, sandwiches or burritos — everything fried, high on carbs or comprising maida. I do get stuck therefore, but I have got used to it now.”

While she’s a vegetarian, her husband, businessman Varun Bangera, loves non-veg. However, Karishma says they don’t have any clashes over their food choices. All for respecting others’ food choices, the actor says, “He knows I dislike non-veg food, but he has grown up eating that. So, I have no right to tell anybody what is right or wrong.”