“That’s always been my philosophy. – I’ve never thought of the consequences of a necessary action.”

in today’s world no country can be absolutely independent of another. It is a world of interdependence.

Until the day she died, my mother continued to fight for the rights of women. She joined all the women’s movements of the time; she stirred up a lot of revolts. She was a great woman, a great figure. Women today would like her immensely.

All my games were political games; I was, like Joan of Arc, perpetually being burned at the stake.

Rebels and non-conformists are often the pioneers and designers of change.

Without courage, you cannot practice any other virtue. You have to have courage – courage of different kinds: first, intellectual courage, to sort out different values and make up your mind about which is the one which is right for you to follow.

Every democratic system evolves its own conventions. It is not only the water but the banks which make the river.

I fall in love with anything I do and I always try to do it well.

Life is always full of dangers and I don’t think one should avoid dangers.

I was a perfect housewife. Being a mother has always been the job I liked best. Absolutely.

Life is a continuous process of adjustment.

Never forget that when we are silent, we are one. And when we speak we are two.

To me the function of politics is to make possible the desirable.

Let’s not forget that in India the symbol of strength is a woman; the goddess Shakti.

Ability is not always gauged by examination.

Politics is the art of acquiring, holding, and wielding power.

As my father [Javāharlāl Nehrū] said, you have to keep an open mind, but you have to pour something into it – otherwise ideas slip away like sand between your fingers.

People who blame others for their failures never overcome them. They simply move from problem to problem. To reach your potential, you must continually improve yourself, and you can’t do that if you don’t take responsibility for your actions and learn from your mistakes.

Indian actors, because of the format of our stories, need to be good actors, and be able to perform emotional sequences, do a bit of comedy, dance and singing, action, because all of this forms just one film. In many ways I’d say there are greater demands on Indian actors than there are on Hollywood.

There are two kinds of people in this world: those who want to get things done, and those who don’t want to make mistakes.

When values, thoughts, feelings, and actions are in alignment, a person becomes focused and character is strengthened.

You gonna do somethin’? or are you just gonna stand there and bleed?

I wish is code for I don’t want to do anything differently.

Conviction is worthless unless it is converted into conduct.

Forgiveness is a complex concept. We must understand it thoroughly to be able to internalize it.