INDIA'S Federal minister Smriti Irani, who rose to fame as a popular TV actor, said she quit acting after becoming a Member of Parliament to focus on her responsibilities as a lawmaker.
“When I came to politics and became an MP, I gave up my job as an actor. If you want to be taken seriously for your political contributions, then you need to give it that much time.
“Only after I settled in my office as a member of Parliament did I put in the time, as much as I can, in my activities of arts and culture,” the Minister for Human Resource Development told reporters.
The 38-year-old actor-turned-politician became a household name with her role as 'Tulsi' in producer Ekta Kapoor's television serial “Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi” in mid-2000. She will be seen in soon to release Abhishek Bachchan-starrer “All is Well”.
Irani clarified that she took up the movie project before becoming a minister and rued that she was not finding any time for its promotion.
“It's not a new movie and when I had the time nobody else did and now unfortunately we are just not getting to get our schedules together (for promotions),” Irani, who is member of Rajya Sabha from Gujarat, said.
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, she contested against Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi in Amethi but lost.
