Upasana Konidela breaks silence on her ‘egg freezing’ remark after massive backlash, says ‘Not privilege, it’s my right’
Ram Charan’s wife Upasana Kamineni Konidela has been in the news for a while now. The entrepreneur and wife of actor Ram Charan triggered an intense debate when she made a statement that women should “freeze eggs” and focus on their career first. Konidela’s statement came when she was doing career counselling for women at IIT Hyderabad. Following her statement, the entire internet blew up with opinions, including those of doctors and influencers.
What was Upasana’s statement?
Upasana Konidela said in a video, “The biggest insurance for women is to freeze their eggs. Because then you can choose when to get married, when you want to have kids, on your own terms, when you are financially independent.” Soon, the video was widely shared on social media platforms like X (formerly known as Twitter).
Internet and doctors’ criticism on Upasana’s comments
As soon as Upasana’s statement made headlines, she received massive criticism, with doctors suggesting that “biology doesn’t care about a career timeline.”
Rajesh Parikh, whose X profile says he’s been practising as an obstetrician and gynaecologist for three decades, reacted to Upasana’s post and wrote, “It’s very easy to give advice on egg freezing when you have crores in the bank. IVF costs lakhs per cycle. Egg freezing costs lakhs upfront plus annual storage charges. Most young women listening to you can’t afford even one attempt.”
He further added, “Fertility peaks in your twenties, declines in your thirties, and drops sharply after 35. Freezing eggs isn’t a guarantee. It’s a gamble with modest success rates.”
Internet users went far and said that Upasana is basically promoting the “Apollo IVF egg-freezing business.” One user added, “A career is important, but you don’t need to delay anything. We need to adapt to situations, not delay situations.”
Upasana Konidela reacts to criticism
Amid the backlash over her comments, Upasana Konidela took to social media to clarify her stance. She said she was pleased to have initiated a “healthy debate” and appreciated the respectful engagement from her followers, adding that she will keep voicing her thoughts on the benefits and burdens of privilege.
She wrote, “Is it wrong for a woman to marry for love instead of giving in to societal pressure? Is it wrong for her to wait until she finds the right partner? Is it wrong for a woman to choose when she wants to have children based on her own circumstances? Is it wrong for a woman to set her goals and focus on her career rather than only thinking of marriage or having children early?”
A total of 108,000 engagements were seen on Upasana’s post by November 18. The internet was divided into two parts. While one section was hailing Upasana for her bold thought process, others were not in favour of her perspective.
Who is Upasana Konidela?
Upasana Konidela (born Kamineni) is the granddaughter of Prathap C. Reddy, who is the founder of Apollo Hospitals. As of now, Upasana works as the Vice Chairperson of Corporate Social Responsibility at Apollo Hospitals.
She tied the knot with actor Ram Charan in 2012, and the couple were blessed with their first child, Klin Kaara, in 2023. Now, Upasana is expecting twins.
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