Pakistan’s iconic actress Atiqa Odho recently shed light on the personal struggles she has had to face along the way as a young woman in the industry and also reflected views on scurrilous and abusive relationships.
Atiqa Odho, in an interview, extended her sincere advice to women tackling abusive relationships and said: “If you are in an abusive relationship, you shouldn’t be in it regardless of the situation. If God has given you functioning limbs and intelligence, and if you can earn by sweeping floors even, which is an equally dignified form of labour, it’s better than being in an abusive relationship. No home with abuse is a stable home. Find a way to get out,” she added.
She stressed the importance of valuing nothing else over the safety and wellbeing of yourself and your children.
“I had a supportive family, my children were my greatest strength. So many people say to me that children can’t do anything, but for me, my children were my biggest support. They stood by me through everything. The only thing I cared about was keeping myself and my children safe. Everything else is irrelevant. Society has nothing to do with it. Society doesn’t raise your kids or save you when someone is hurting you. No one comes to your door, so who are you pleasing? This society is not worth it. I have the right to live a happy, comfortable life. My children have the right to a stable, normal existence,” said the Humsafar star.
Moreover, on her beginnings in the showbiz industry Odho shared, “I started my career as a stylist, so I worked mostly behind the scenes at first doing makeovers for actors. I studied for it in the UK.”
The actor added that her stint behind as a stylist led to several offers to work on the other side of the camera. She said, “When I’d go to ad shoots to prepare models behind the scenes, I would get a lot of offers with people asking me if I would like to be in front of the camera. So, after a while, I thought, “Why not?” I always loved the film, fashion and the arts, so I made the decision to take the plunge.”
Odho explained that while she loved the idea of acting, she was also in need of financial stability. “By that time, I already had two children and I was going through a divorce, so I needed the money as well. People often hide the difficult parts of their life behind a facade, but I very openly talk about them. Styling wasn’t getting me the money I needed to raise two children, so I started going in front of the camera. The first ad I did was for a tea company. That’s where Anwar Sahab spotted me and offered me Siatara Aur Mehrunnisa,” she revealed.
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