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When Single Papa first came out, Kunal Kemmu got a lot of love and recognition. The series helped single fathers feel seen and created a lot more fresh fans of the actor. Unfortunately, now he is being thrashed by people because of his latest comments about an already ongoing controversy.

Ever since Deepika Padukone demanded an 8-hour work shift for actresses, almost every celebrity is being asked their opinions on the matter. Some agree with her and some don’t. Kemmu’s comments are painting him as a misogynist.

Although the comments made by Kunal Kemmu on Soha Ali Khan’s podcast are being taken out of proportion in the viral edit, what he said in the actual interview isn’t rainbows and butterflies either. His comments about adjusting to the way the world works screams of male privilege and misogyny. For decades and centuries now, the way of the world has been patriarchal.

“You can take 8 hours or 4 hours. You become the producer, you put in your own money, then you’re the boss. You decide, ‘I wanna work for two hours only,’ and then you will know that you won’t finish the film in time or the project will cost so much. I will lose money,” he said.

The entire point is that women want to stop working as per the world. Things don’t come as easily to them as they do to men. Whether you’re an actor, an office worker or something else entirely, the world affects you differently as a man than it would as a woman.

He continued, “Empower yourself, reach a position that it is possible for you to do and do exactly what you want. But you can’t say, ‘you give me a job, but now I’ll tell you how much you pay me and when I will come and show up and work and I will tell you how to run the show.’ Because then you’ll be like, ‘then you do it. Why am I suffering by taking this choice of working with you. And I am saying this in general.”

Credit: Instagram/kunalkhemmu

Whether it was a comment on Deepika Padukone’s demand for an 8-hour shift or not, having a baby doesn’t give you an ‘incubation’ period. A mother goes through a lot during that time and to blame it on her lack of planning is insensitive, as if it doesn’t take two to tango.

“But you still have a choice. There is an incubation of nine months. You can plan it. You decided to be a mother. You planned it. Unless you’re an accidental mother, that’s a different story. If you’re going to plan it, then you have to plan it right. Your planning cannot affect the way the world is working. It goes for men also. It’s not a gender thing. It’s just a mindset thing. If you’re going to do something in life, there are going to be repercussions...It’s not a sacrifice. It is just a commitment towards a job that you want to do...It’s not a man-woman thing. It is just a mindset.”

The responsibility isn’t the mother’s alone. Women and men are physically different, and they shouldn’t just switch their careers or give up the possibility of seeing growth just because they chose to have children. The child isn’t the mother’s alone. For someone who worked on Single Papa, his words come as straight up problematic. People are calling him a misogynist online, and while he argues that this can apply to both genders, the world treats both genders very differently.

Lead and social image credits: Instagram/kunalkemmu