Neena Gupta has a rather straightforward way of dealing with people who cross personal boundaries — she gives them a taste of their own medicine. The veteran actor recently opened up about how she responds to intrusive questions about marriage and unwanted comments about her appearance, revealing that she prefers blunt comebacks over letting such remarks get to her.Gupta was asked how she deals with relatives or others who casually ask, “When are you getting married?” She revealed that she has a ready response for such questions. “Tumhare baap ka nahi khati (I am not dependent on you). What’s your problem? Did you get married or not?” she said in an interview with CNN-News18.Gupta also recalled an incident when comments about her weight came after a minor wardrobe issue while she was wearing a saree. “I was wearing a saree earlier, and I adjusted it here like this, and it got a bit bulky around here, near my waist. People were like, ‘At my age, 60, am I pregnant?’” she recalled.Instead of allowing the remarks to upset her, Gupta decided to turn the situation into a lesson for others facing body-shaming. She said she asked her team to tell people that she was pregnant. “So I advise people around me, tell them you’re pregnant if they bodyshame you,” she said.Gupta has also spoken about the expectations placed on women when it comes to their clothes and appearance. Discussing the issue with NDTV, she pointed out that women in several neighbourhoods in Delhi are still expected to cover their faces with a veil. “I think it’s going to stay like this. It is not going to change. Not at all. Mark my words. Because society is such. Even today, nothing has really changed. Whatever has changed, it has changed only by a few percentage points. What has changed is that women have started earning,” she said.Meanwhile, Gupta is set to feature in the upcoming comedy-drama series ‘Chumbak’, which revolves around five families living in an urban Indian neighbourhood. The series also stars Deven Bhojani, Arjun Bijlani, Helly Shah, Sumeet Vyas, Manasi Parekh, Sumeet Raghvan, Sandeepa Dhar, Delnaaz Irani, Anant V. Joshi and Amyra Dastur.‘Chumbak’ comes from Hats Off Productions, the banner behind popular shows such as ‘Sarabhai vs Sarabhai’ and ‘Khichdi’. Aatish Kapadia has written and directed the series, while Jamnadas (JD) Majethia and Kapadia are its producers.
