From Vikrant Massey to Virat Kohli: Celebrities who advocated for gender equality in their relationships

Many celebrities are an inspiration to many. Be it their personal or professional life-- people not only follow them but also subconsciously imitate them. When it comes to their personal lives, over the years many celebs have not only given us some major couple goals but also taught us a lesson or two about gender equality in relationships. Here we list some such celebs and the relationship lessons to learn from them:
Photo: Vikrant Massey & Anushka Sharma/ Instagram

In 2024, actor Vikrant Massey surprised his fans by posting a picture of himself touching his wife Sheetal Thakur's feet on Karwa Chauth-- an act which came as a surpirse to many, considering the patriarchal society we live in. Talking about it incident, which wen t viral on the internet back then, Vikrant Massey said in an interview with The Lallantop, "My phone had six photos, but only four of them became a topic of discussion. Some people liked it, while others even abused me. I don’t understand why. I believe that if you want peace at home, you should touch your wife’s feet from time to time. People made those photos viral... She is the Lakshmi of my home, and I don’t think it’s wrong to touch Lakshmi’s feet. I proudly say that she came into my life 10 years ago and changed it for the better. Ever since she entered my life, only good things have happened, and to keep it that way, I continue to touch her feet."

Photo: Vikrant Massey/ Instagram

Actor Rajkummar Rao recently shared that it wasn't just him who applied sindoor to his wife during their wedding ceremony, but also his wife who did so as they "weren't comfortable with some of the rituals" which promote patriarchy. Talking about this particular incident, he said in an interview with Mojo Story, “At that moment it was very impulsive, I felt why is it just her wearing the sindoor, mangalsutra and chooda? I thought she had to wear and do so much, what I am doing? I was just wearing the ring. I just asked her, ‘You should also put sindoor on me. It should be equal'.” Recalling the moment, Rajkummar said that his wife Patralekha was a bit overwhelmed at that moment, which is now a cherished moment from their bid day.

Photo: rajkummar_rao/ Instagram

Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia have been together for over 20 years, and over the years they have given us many couple goals to inspire us. In an interview he once spoke about how he helped his wife in taking care and raising their two sons; afterall, parenting and child care isn't just a woman's role. "Fathers can’t breastfeed the child but he can change the bottles or diapers. Fathers need to be mothers and mothers can also be fathers," Riteish once said, talking about gender equality in his marriage, in an interview with MensXP.

Photo: Riteish Deshmukh/ Instagram

In 2020, Virat Kohli and his wife Anushka Sharma welcomed their first child, Vamika. And while childbirth and parenting are traditionally considered to be a woman's job, but Virat Kohli set a great example for men by taking a paternity leave to be with his family in such at a crucial time. Back then, Kohli had taken a leave for personal reasons leaving an important cricket series. While his paternity leave was a matter which was much discussed back in 2020, the cricketer showed his love and care for his partner in an important time through his actions.

Photo: Anushka Sharma/ Instagram

Producer-author Twinkle Khanna surprised everyone recently when she had shared that she was pursuing a degree in creative writing from a university in the UK. And her husband Akshay Kumar supported her in this; it was considered a big decision as Twinkle had to move to the UK for a couple of months, leaving her family behind. This love and support from her partner is a lesson to borrow from the couple.

Photo: Twinkle Khanna/ Instagram