Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; March 23, 2018)

Kangana Ranaut is turning a year older today and she is celebrating it by planting trees around her newly-done bungalow in Manali. She turns 31 and in a symbolic gesture, she has planted as many trees over the last one week.

Besides the ones that she has planted, she plans to grow kiwis, cherries, apricots, and apples. She has also gifted herself a grand piano and has started taking lessons. “Learning the piano was always on my bucket list and this is the perfect time. I am a classical music freak and always attend such concerts. So, this was a conscious decision. Piano is very tough and as of now, my teacher is playing and I am only listening,” she laughs.

As for developing an interest in gardening, Kangana says it has been passed on to her by her mother. “My mamma always maintained a kitchen garden where we would grow vegetables and apples. I have always had fresh veggies from there. But I realised my love for gardening only now. I like to eat organic food and I love getting my shoes and hands dirty while digging the soil and planting trees. It takes an hour every day and is tiring, but it’s also a stress buster,” says Kangana.

What are her plans this year? “As you get into your 30s, there is a shift in your personality. The things you really want become clear to you. Besides professional growth, I want to grow in the personal space, too. I want to improve my personality, learn many other things, and be the woman I’ve always wanted to be.”

“I am halfway there, but I can do so much better. As an actor, you are either in your character, or studying other people — you hardly get time to be yourself. This is the time I want to do all that,” she elaborates.

Professionally, the actress has wrapped up the shoot of Manikarnika - The Queen Of Jhansi and will soon start her next, Mental Hai Kya. “I look forward to promoting Manikarnika. It is the highest-budget female-centric film in India. They are planning a massive campaign to promote the movie, which releases in August. Rani Lakshmibai deserves it. It is her legacy and we are just a medium to present it,” she says.

On her birthday today, Kangana will visit the Kartikeya temple, that is next to her house. “It is going to be like any other day here. I will be gardening and having my piano classes. My family has planned an elaborate lunch, though I don’t like to eat much,” she signs off.

Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; September 16, 2017)

Kangana Ranaut calls a spade a spade, a trait that is arguably uncharacteristic in an industry that thrives on fawning and pandering. No wonder then, the actor has often found herself involved in controversies or spats with her colleagues. While her fans have lauded her for daring to take on men in power and being an icon of feminism, there have been those who have conveniently labelled her a man-hater.

Taking the accusation head-on at the Jagran Cinema Summit that was held yesterday in Mumbai, Ranaut said, "I am not a man-hater. In fact, I have more male friends than female ones."

The actor further pointed out that championing the cause of gender equality does not necessarily equate to bashing men. "I am not sure when I became a feminist. The whole perception of inequality and of one being inferior to the other is too bizarre for me to come to terms with. I can't understand it. Feminism is just indicative that the balance between genders is missing from the system, and it's a sorry state to be in."

Ranaut said that her 11-year-long journey in Bollywood has depicted how by and large, the system is biased towards men. "My journey [in the industry] is magical, but magic has its price. Lineage has been restricted within the males of the industry. There is a deep-rooted patriarchy. Showbiz is a fantasy land. It swings between extraordinary, fantastic and tragic."

Elaborating her point, she said, "Certain things are expected of men, but sneered upon when women do it. Consider their sexual lives for instance. Having sex is fun for a man, but for a woman, it's almost criminal. Such is the general perception of the glamour world. Men brag about their Casanova sons, but when it comes to their daughters, she can't be wearing a bikini. [It is okay if] 15 bikini-clad women are hovering around him and his son, but the daughter has to comply with feudal ideas."

Reflecting on her career so far, she spoke about the fleeting nature of success, saying by the time "you get used to success, it's gone." Tracing back to her debutante days, she revealed how her choices weren't appreciated by her near and dear ones. "When Gangster (2006) released, my mother was happy, but my father had his reservations. The depiction of passion [in the film] was unsettling for him."

While acid attack survivor Reshma Qureshi took the fashion world by storm when she walked the ramp in New York this week, back in India, a special court sentenced Preeti Rathi's attacker with the death penalty, reigniting the issue of such rampant incidents in the country. Reshma and Rangoli Chandel (Kangana Ranaut's sister), who is also a survivor, share their stories...
Madhureeta Mukherjee and Hiren Kotwani (BOMBAY TIMES; September 11, 2016)

Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut's sister, Rangoli faced a brutal acid attack in 2006. She fought back after almost losing an eye and ear, but she still hasn't forgotten the trauma. Today, she's come into her own and works closely with her star sister. But her battle for survival has been horrific. However, she had a great support system in Kangana, her mom and Ajay Chandel, the man who stood by her. Rangoli hails the death penalty, which was announced recently for Ankur Panwar in the Preeti Rathi acid attack case, as a positive development, but doubts if things will change till there are serious checks on the storage and availability of acid.

TAKE ACTION AGAINST THOSE WHO STORE ACID
Rangoli still remembers the trauma of the days and months after the attack. “I almost lost one eye; my windpipe and food pipe were shrinking. I don't remember how many surgeries I went through. Whenever my mother saw me, she would faint. My father couldn't bear to look at me and took to drinking. It's not just the survivor who suffers, but the entire family. I was engaged to an Air Force officer, but once he saw me at the hospital, he never came back. For the first couple of months, I couldn't see myself in the mirror. I'm lucky to have a sister like Kangana, who got me the best treatment possible then,“ she remembers.

This is why she hails the verdict in the Preeti Rathi case as landmark. “With due respect to the honourable judge, this (the death penalty) is the correct verdict. Whoever commits this crime should get the same punishment. No bail, no life term, as they will get out after a few years. But then, acid is still available in the market. The authorities should crack down on people who store and sell it,“ she stresses.

MY SUPPORT SYSTEM HELPED ME SURVIVE
Through that difficult phase, Rangoli found support from the man she married. “My husband, Ajay, whom I knew from my school days, met me after I came out of the hospital. He didn't make me feel different. That also helped me regain confidence. Yoga and meditation helped considerably. Thankfully, my doctor was supportive too, as were Kangana and my mom. My support system helped me survive. Usually, girls get paranoid about just a pimple. For me, this was more than just mental trauma and the pain. You feel numb, you don't know your future,“ she recalls.

It's known that Kangana too was threatened by the attacker and had to seek police security. “This was at a time when she was not a big star. Yet, she diverted her focus to me and my recovery. She spent her earnings on my treatment. The man who attacked me got a seven-year sentence. We were struggling with our lives; we didn't know kya hoga, kaise hoga... But you have to come out of it. You can't be in that mourning zone forever,“ says Rangoli.

Kangana Ranaut about how she seems to be unwittingly attracting a lot of negativity towards herself
Shubha Shetty Saha (MID-DAY; September 3, 2015)

"Some people are destined to struggle… struggle all their lives…” Kangana Ranaut had told me with a sigh at a particularly vulnerable moment some time ago. As disbelieving as it may sound, this girl is at a place where she is being showered with fame and opportunities, all gained by the dint of sheer hard work and struggle. But dig a bit deeper and you will come face-to-face with the not-so-pretty truth that she’s referring to.

Ten years ago, Kangana’s troubles seemed more real and tangible, as she struggled to get acknowledgement for herself and her talent. Today, ironically, she says her struggle is to brush away the unwanted attention and veiled negativity that fame has brought along with it. Ask her about the scores of negative things being said about her which includes stories of her throwing tantrums on the set of Vishal Bhardwaj’s Rangoon and getting too big for her stylish boots, and she says with a wry smile, “I was just talking to Vishal about it. He told me just this one thing, ‘Ignore those people who are talking negative things about you. Shoot them down with your performance.’ That gave me a lot of confidence. These negative things said about me are working like a blessing in disguise. Rangoon started like any other film, but there are so many negative things being said about it that it is only bringing all of us together. I won’t deny that I get really affected by these things. It was just another project for me, but when I saw the support that the team is showing, it has become special for me.”

She goes on to elaborate: ”I know what’s going on. There are some people who don’t like what I am getting to do. I seem to have become the easiest target. So, all kinds of stories about me are being floated. If I go on to clarify, I fall into a trap. The idea is to make me lose focus and I must admit that it has been very demoralising. I am horrified to see how bitter and negative people here can get. I am not some super human being. I know that my position is being targeted. I have slogged for a decade to reach where I have and I know that if one film goes haywire, I will be attacked. But I choose to take that as a challenge. These things are only making me stronger. My sister gets worried and asks why am I taking so much stress; let people say what they want to, or do what they want to. I end up with a neck pain every night. But this stress is also helping me, because it keeps me on my toes. These people, who are waiting to pull me down, are actually pushing me to go beyond my limits. My contemporaries who want me to fail are actually helping me excel. It’s just that every morning I wake up, I think I didn’t work hard for this.”

And then she says it, again with a sigh, “No matter what the struggle, it seems like my struggles are never-ending.” Yet, she hopes that two-three successful films later, she might be in a better position and spared being made a soft target.

While she has started training for Rangoon and doing the look test for the 1940’ s super star that she’s playing, it is Katti Batti, her next release, that’s taking up a lot of her time these days. “My focus right now is on Katti Batti. I play this tragedy-stricken character and you have to watch it to believe what I am saying. I was crying even when I read the script and my mother, who was visiting me at that time, got worried and asked me if I should be doing such intense roles at all,” she recalls.

While her sensitive nature seems to work for her in her chosen field of profession, it often seems to work against her too. Kangana agrees and says: “I get taken in by what character I play. Not only roles, but even in real life, I am sensitive to a fault. When my sister suffered the acid attack, I couldn’t sleep for days. So, my mother and sister get worried for me and wondered if I can handle such roles and all the stress that comes with this profession. Most of us end up being so empty by the end of everything. Most actors get messed up because we live so many separate lives.”

Kangana says she feels grateful about one thing — the unwavering support that she’s got from the people she’s worked with. “Vishal and Sajid (Nadiadwala, producer of the film) are showing such faith in me that I sometimes feel overwhelmed. Everyone I have worked with has taken me under their wings and protected me. At times, I wonder what I have done to get such support,” she signs off.