Women’s Day: Adah Sharma defines 'girl power' - 'Not putting another woman down'

New Delhi, March 7 (IANS) Ahead of International Women's Day on March 8, 'The Kerala Story' actress Adah Sharma says she considers herself fortunate to be a woman in the film industry because women are being given "such powerful roles".

Talking exclusively to IANS on the occasion of International Women's Day, Adah said: "I feel very fortunate to be a woman in this day and age."

Adah made her Bollywood debut in 2008 with the successful Hindi horror film '1920' . She was then doing high-octane action in the 'Commando' franchise. It was last year, however, when she gained a national following with her performance in Vipul Amritlal Shah's 'The Kerala Story'.

Now, she is all set to showcase her acting chops in the upcoming film 'Bastar: The Naxal Story', which is based on Maoist insurgency in the Bastar district of Chhattisgarh. Her ever-expanding filmography is proof that she is here and means serious business when it comes to content.

"At a time when women are landing powerful roles, I got 'The Kerala Story', followed by 'Bastar: The Naxal Story', and 'Sunflower' Season 2 was also released," Adah said, looking back at a creatively satisfying year.

What does girl power mean to her? "For me, 'girl power' is not putting another woman down, not speaking ill of another woman, and propping other women up."

Continuing on the theme, she added: "Also, as a woman, I wouldn't like to diminish another woman's credibility just because she looks glamorous."

Adah went on to compare her generation of actresses with her predecessors, saying that it is not just now that women are taken seriously in showbiz.

"Actresses in the past too have had stronger roles," she noted. "Women in the industry in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s were very glamorous and talented too.” The problem, though, was that they did not have an ideal workplace.

The 31-year-old actress jogged her memory and recollected a conversation she had with a yesteryear actress who told her about the hardships her generation faced while shooting.

"They did not have vanity vans like we do nowadays," Adah said, recalling the conversation. "Now we have a van and can use a clean loo in between shoots to change clothes safely."