Gul Panag: I like to keep my personal life private

Actress-politician Gul Panag says it is not much difficult to keep one's personal life private if one wishes to be.

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The 37-year-old former Miss India, who is married to Rishi Attari from five years, said she does not like to talk often about her personal life. "Rishi, my husband, was constantly by my side during the election campaign. From the last 17 years, we have been together and married for five years. But he has mastered the art of blending into the shadows," said Gul, who fought the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Chandigarh on a ticket from Aam Admi Party but lost to Kirron Kher of BJP.

"Even media respect the fact that we like to keep our personal life private. If you are in showbiz in India then your personal life is under scrutiny but if you want to keep it private, you can," Gul said at the India Today Conclave 2016. The actress along with Pakistani activist Reham Khan was speaking at the session "empowering women across borders". Reham, who had a brief marriage with Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, said she has no qualms in discussing her private life.

"I have always stressed that I will not be the stereotypical first lady... I never married him for the status the man had. In Pakistan, situations are still very different. We may appear to be very modern but our thoughts are stereotypical where you are not listening to female voice at all. So, men have to be empowered first and we can empower men by atmosphere of their household." The mother of three, 42, said she is proud about the upbringing her son had. "I am incredibly proud of my 22-year-old son. Everytime he interacts with a woman, I fill with pride. He is so well mannered, something which comes naturally to him.

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