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Zoho's Sridhar Vembu counters Upasana Konidela's video on egg freezing, urges entrepreneurs to ‘marry, have kids in 20s’
Upasana Konidela spoke about women's financial freedom, emphasising the importance of saving eggs for personal choice in marriage and motherhood.
Entrepreneur Upasana Kamineni Konidela recently spoke to students at IIT Hyderabad on the importance of financial freedom for women, saying that saving their eggs is the "biggest insurance for women".
In a now-viral video that shared shared on social media, Konidela, who is married to Telugu star Ram Charan, said it is her financial independence that helped her make key decisions.
"The biggest insurance for women is to save your 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," she said.
“Today, I stand on my own feet. I earn a living for myself. I am proudly financially independent. This security made me strong and confident to make bold decisions in my life”. Konidela, who is pregnant with her second child, had earlier spoken about her own egg-feezing journey.
Konidela's post triggered a debate on X, with reactions split between support and disagreement.
Zoho billionaire reacts to Upasana Konidela's IIT Hyderabad video
Among those who countered her were Zoho founder and former CEO Sridhar Vembu who believes young entrepreneurs have a "demographic duty to society and their own ancestors" to get married and have children in their 20s.
"I advise young entrepreneurs I meet, both men and women, to marry and have kids in their 20s and not keep postponing it. I tell them they have to do their demographic duty to society and their own ancestors. I know these notions may sound quaint or old-fashioned but I am sure these ideas will resonate again," Vembu said in X, reposting the viral video on Upasana Konidela's interaction with IIT Hyderabad students.
Last month, Upasana and Ram Charan announced that they are expecting their second child. The couple posted a video from her baby shower ceremony on Instagram with superstar Chiranjeevi and wife Surekha. The ceremony coincided with Diwali celebrations. The couple welcomed their first child, daughter Klin Kaara, in 2023.
