It really doesn’t take a jasoos to see the friction between Katrina Kaif and Ranbir Kapoor, as they promote their upcoming film Jagga Jasoos. As a media student, I have a habit of reading between the lines and observing even the not-so-obvious facial expressions. But in this case, Katrina’s expressions and her responses every time Ranbir mansplained something, were hard to miss.
It started in an interview with Xerxes on MTV Insider, when Katrina was asked what Jagga and Shruti were like as characters – Ranbir couldn’t help but take over the conversation. And his excuse for butting in? “Yeah, but you’re not saying it properly,” He replied when Katrina made a comment about how he’s answering questions on her behalf when she’s sitting right there. Clearly, Katrina wasn’t in the mood to close the matter either. She pointed out that during the initial few days of shooting, Ranbir would be her partner-in-crime but now it’s become about him teaching her what to do and what to say. Like this wasn’t enough, Ranbir said how he was returning the favour since Katrina was so nice to him during Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani. To which Katrina responds with an eye roll.
Not much later I watched Rajeev Masand’s interview with the duo and I couldn’t help but get extremely angry! Ranbir followed the same pattern of interrupting her but this time it was accompanied with constant zoning out of the conversation and speaking only when he felt it was necessary to butt in. For instance, when asked about trying her hand at production, Katrina was ‘corrected’ by Ranbir because obviously, she probably can’t remember facts about her own life. Ranbir kept arguing that she’d acquired the rights of Priceless when Katrina told him that it was He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. She ended that by saying that “Okay, sorry. I must be wrong. If you say so.”
I’m not sure if it’s just me trying to read the dynamics of their relationship too closely or this is something that all of us have turned a blind eye towards for a long time. It’s the annoying habit of not wanting to listen to a woman because obviously, she won’t make sense, right?
Mansplaining very much exists and we ALL need to stand up against it.
I’m not a man-hater. I’m a feminist. And yes, there IS a difference between the two! We love Katrina for standing up for herself and consequently, all women. You go, girl!
P.S: Here’s a video Katrina shared on Instagram making a joke about mansplaining. Not sure if it’s a promotional stunt or an attempt at covering up the mess. What do you think?
Featured Image: YouTube
