Taapsee Pannu: Not threatened but since everyone isn’t that used to having strong women around the fear of unknown and the resistance to change is there. It will take time to adapt.
Shabana Azmi: Most certainly in certain sections of society strong women are considered “militant” However HR heads will tell you that women are also increasingly being preferred for middle-level jobs. It’s at the top positions that you find fewer women.
Celina Jaitley: It is interesting that you ask this question. I recently read about scientific research which actually proved this. The researchers who conducted the study asked a group of men to think of how they would feel about their masculinity if their date, girlfriend or wife outsmarted them. The results revealed that the men were attracted to smarter ladies only if the women in question were psychologically far from them. If the men were psychologically near to a more intelligent woman, they would lose all interest in dating her. So it turns out that men can feel attracted to smarter women or women who are better than them in some fields, but this is not a love interest. I guess it’s embedded in male DNA since prehistoric times when people lived in caves, and the men went out hunting while the women stayed in the cave and looked after the kids. Despite scientific evidence, I would like to be fair and say I do not believe all men are the same and I also sincerely believe that far too many women also believe that being aggressive, rude, abusive and generally unpleasant makes them ‘strong’; so it’s very important to remember that strength also does not mean being a vicious human being. Successful women have an aura that says I belong in this seat.
Pooja Bedi: Only weak men feel threatened by strong women. If a man is internally secure, emotionally and mentally mature and evolved, he loves his woman for being the person she is and not who she has to be to please him. So it makes no difference to him as to what his woman wears, whether she makes more money than him. Her accolades make him proud, her hobbies and passions are respected, and he knows that together they will empower each other to be the best versions of themselves. He operates from respect, not resentment because he is a good and strong man. When you love something you don’t crush it, you allow it to bloom. You only crush what scares you.
Dia Mirza: Well, it depends on the perception, education and humanity of men who see strong women as a threat to men. It only points to the deep-rooted patriarchy and misogyny that has been normalized over centuries.
Swara Bhaskar: Yes, men do feel threatened by strong women. I mean even if not consciously but subconsciously I think that strong and vocal women make people who have male-centric and status quo-ist mindsets uncomfortable.
Lilette Dubey: I don’t think the strong women are so much as aggressive women … they don’t mind the strong, silent woman! They don’t like women who strongly and vociferously give their opinions / fight for issues / for rights / against patriarchy / against taking it lying down. … and a million other injustices … those women who are independent and don’t really need them except for biological and reproductive reasons! Those are the ones they feel threatened by.
Neena Gupta: No woman is a threat to men.
Khushboo Sundar: We don’t threaten them. Men feel intimidated and insecure in the presence of a powerful woman.
Tanushree Dutta: Some perhaps, not all men are threatened by strong assertive women. Men who are strong, confident and assertive themselves would not be threatened by an educated, sophisticated and confident woman. It depends really on what kind of circle and environment one is in. There are all kinds of people in the world and so I don’t like to generalize or categorize people based on one or two experiences in life.