"Talent Alone Isn’t Enough, You Need to Know Your Worth’: Smriti Irani’s Bold Advice for Young Women to Secure Better Pay

In a recent conclave, Smriti Irani was asked a curious question that eventually led to her doling out a very important and practical life lesson to everyone present.  When asked about the first word that comes to mind when she thinks of her iconic character Tulsi, Smriti's response wasn't nostalgic or emotional. It was refreshingly practical. "Paycheque!" she declared without hesitation, before delivering what would become one of the most valuable pieces of career advice young professionals would hear.

Her candid response during the Q&A session was a deliberate message rooted in decades of industry experience and hard-earned wisdom. "I am saying this deliberately because I want the young girls who are in our audience today to understand this. 25 years ago, when I started my journey as a creative person, I saw a documentary of one of the legends of our creative industry who is sitting here right now. In that, he said that no matter how talented people are, they are told in their early days that you do not have the 'aukat' of having a good contract or a good pay cheque. So, if you create so much merit somewhere on the basis of your talent, negotiate your contract well. Get a good pay cheque, invest in yourself, for your future, because when troubled times come, a person suffers alone. So that's my one-word response - Pay cheque!"

On the work front, with the reboot of the iconic show, Smriti steps back into her beloved role of Tulsi, joined by familiar faces like Amar Upadhyay (Mihir), Shakti Anand, Gauri Pradhan, Hiten Tejwani, Ritu Seth, Kamalika Guha Thakurta, and Ketki Dave.Smriti Irani also made an appearence earler this month, in a preview clip shared by Soha on Instagram, she wrote: “Tulsi in 2000 vs. Tulsi in 2025… what would they say to each other? This isn’t just an episode, it’s a Moment!”