Neelam Kothari became a well-known name in Bollywood due to the popularity of her film, Ilzaam alongside Govinda. She continued to gain recognition for her cuteness, her unique fashion sense, and her much-loved pairing with Govinda across another 13 films. However, Neelam eventually left Bollywood for good and became an entrepreneur running her own jewelery business, Neelam Jewels. Now, with her stint on Fabulous Lives Vs Bollywood Wives , the attention is on her once again. And at a recent event, Neelam opened up about her professional journey, including acting at a time when hardly any women were on set.

Neelam Kothari recalls acting at a time when she and her hairstylist would be the only women on set

Actress-turned-entrepreneur, Neelam Kothari recently appeared for a session at Business Today’s Most Powerful Women event. She was accompanied by her Fabulous Lives Vs Bollywood Wives castmates, Shalini Passi, Neelam Kothari, Maheep Kapoor, Seema Sajdeh, and Bhavana Pandey. During the same, Neelam reminisced about her early days in Bollywood and got candid about how things had changed over time.

Neelam revealed that back then, there were hardly any women on set working behind the scenes. In fact, most of the time, the only other woman besides her would be her hairstylist. Neelam said:

“Back then, if we were talking about women in the industry, it was often just me and maybe my hairstylist — there weren’t many other women around. Today, the industry is filled with talented women: writers, directors, artists – – it’s truly inspiring to see how far we’ve come.”

Neelam Kothari says people refused to buy her jewelery because they judged her for her celebrity status.

Neelam Kothari also got candid about her professional journey from being an actress to a jewelery business owner. And the journey was anything but easy, with Neelam even calling it ‘the hardest transition’ of her life. 

According to Neelam, people often doubted her business acumen due to her past as an actress and a celebrity. They would conveniently forget that she came from a family of jewellers, with both her grandfather and her great-grandfather having worked in the trade. Neelam said:

“When I started my jewelery business, people assumed, ‘Oh, she’s an actress with nothing else to do, so now she’s trying her hand at jewellery.’ People thought, ‘What does she know about the business? We’re not buying from her.'”

Neelam Kothari says building her brand and business has been a slow but sure journey

Neelam Kothari revealed that her former celebrity status affected her business for a solid 1 to 2 years. According to her, that was a time when people would think she knew nothing about business and refuse to buy from her. However, despite the challenges, Neelam managed to build her brand slowly but surely. 

What do you think about Neelam Kothari’s revelations about hardly any women working behind the scenes on sets during her early years in Bollywood?

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