Give education, equality to girl child, urges Amitabh Bachchan

New Delhi: The girl child should be nurtured, educated and treated as equal to the opposite gender, megastar Amitabh Bachchan said as the ambassador of the 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padao' campaign, at a gala event here on Saturday to mark the completion of two years of the Narendra Modi government.

Pointing out at how in Indian culture, women are worshipped in different forms, he said god resides where women are held in respect.

"In the present, this can be achieved only when there is equality between men and women," Amitabh said at the 'Ek Nayi Subah', held at the India Gate lawns here.

He called for correcting the skewed gender ratio in the country.

"A girl child should be nurtured, educated and taken care of so that eventually they can essay a relevant and valuable role in the society. This thought should be encouraged, and people should put in their best to bring up the girl child.

"Only this way will they eventually be able to not just take care of themselves, but also take care of the family in all arenas," added the 73-year-old, who is one of Indian cinema's most noted icons.

The actor also shared that the 'Beti bachao, Beti padao' campaign strives to emphasise that there must not be discrimination between boys and girls.

"This is the time when people need to understand that by depriving half the people (women) of equal opportunity, we will be pushing back our society. We must make women an equal part of everything so that our country progresses and develops in a better way," he said.

Amitabh is also a United Nations ambassador for the girl child mission.

Besides the talk on girl child, Big B also interacted with girl children from various schools, and even recited lines from his father's famous "Madhushala", sharing words of wisdom with the children.

During one such interaction with a student of Class 7, he sat down on the floor when he was asked how he became "Big B".

"Who says I'm Big B? See, I am so small," he explained to the little girl from NGO Aarohan, and told her: "In life, just do your work, and work hard. Find a way that you want to pursue, and work hard towards it."

When another student asked the actor what they must do if their parents don't let them follow their passion to dance, Amitabh urged their parents to "allow their girls to follow their dreams".

"Don't stop them... Until and unless they are on a wrong path."