You Will Always Have A Price To Pay’
Smriti Irani has often spoken about the expectations placed on women who refuse to follow conventional paths. Recalling advice from her mother, she said she learnt early that standing by her choices would come with a price. “I took a lesson very early when my mother told me if you want to stand by your choices and by your decision, it doesn’t come easy. You will always a price to pay.” She added that women who are assertive can often be labelled “too optimistic or too high-handed or short-fused, or too aggressive”, while the same tags may not necessarily be applied to their male colleagues.

‘If I Laugh While Going To The Bank, Who Cares What I Do On Screen’
Before entering politics, Irani was one of television’s most recognisable faces, best known for her role as Tulsi in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. At one event, when the moderator joked about how much her characters used to cry on television, Irani responded with humour: “If I laugh while going to the bank, who cares what I do on screen.” The line became a memorable reminder of how she has often separated her on-screen image from her real-life ambitions.

‘You Are Enough’
After being named among the Fortune 100 Most Powerful Women, Irani offered a simple message to women: “My message to every woman is simple: You are enough.” She went on to say that women often push themselves harder than anyone else, setting their own benchmarks and raising their own standards while competing with themselves every day. Her comments focused on the pressure women frequently place on themselves while navigating careers, expectations and personal goals.

‘Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’
Irani also brought her television legacy into a conversation about artificial intelligence at the India AI Impact Summit 2026. Speaking about AI and women’s participation in economic growth, she said: “Teach the saas, teach the bahu, take the country forward because saas bhi kabhi bahu thi.” The familiar phrase from her iconic television role was used to make a larger point about families embracing technology and ensuring women are not left out of the AI revolution.

‘You Spent Half Your Life So That You Will Be Forgotten In The Other Half’
One of Irani’s more emotional reflections came while speaking about motherhood and the experience of watching children grow up. Describing the everyday exhaustion of raising children while managing a career, she recalled the transformation from changing nappies to dealing with teenagers. “I was just cleaning nappies and now this person is talking back to me,” she said. But her most poignant observation was about the eventual distance between mothers and their grown-up children: “You spent half your life so that you will be forgotten in the other half,” she said. She also encouraged people to release old anger and burdens, writing: “Let go of the weight of the past. Forgive the anger. Forgive yourself. The greatest gift is to #JustBe”.