World Nature Conservation Day | Bhumi Pednekar: We’re selfish, forget that we can’t keep abusing nature

As a climate warrior, the state of the planet and how people are casual about nature, worries actor Bhumi Pednekar. On the occasion of World Nature Conservation Day (July 28), the actor says she strongly believes that our generation has to be the generation that regenerates and restores our planet.

“We’ve reached a brink where we’ve pushed our planet to a point where things have gotten out of control. If you see what’s happening around — the flash floods in Germany, parts of Maharashtra and China — it’s all bad. There are forest fires in the US, there’s heat wave in Canada. Now it’s important for us to understand that we’ve pushed it beyond our control and if we don’t set things right, and then it is not going to be good for future generations to come,” cautions Pednekar.

The 32-year-old says it’s rather unfair to all children and young adults to not have the kind of life that she and others have had like “not having the freedom to breathe clean air and drink clean water and enjoy nature the way we did.”

She elaborates, “Today is the day about realising that what we’ve left is best and we need to hold it tight and protect it and regenerate more. That’s our duty towards our future generations. We were born in an abundant planet and now we’ve reached this point… We need world leaders to acknowledge and the general public to acknowledge that what we’re doing right now isn’t okay. We need to coexist with nature and with different species. We, humans, in general are so selfish. We often forget that we can’t keep abusing nature and our resources.”

Working at the ground level at a macro level with various people, the Pati Patni Aur Woh (2019) actor says that there are many challenges that she faces, especially about education people on the seriousness of conservation of nature.

“The most difficult thing is when you go and tell people about it and they’re like, ‘Oh climate change isn’t real, and it’s all made up.’ My response to such people is that they’re so comfortable in the lies they’re living that they don’t want to face the truth. They don’t want a life of inconvenience,” she adds.

However, Pednekar is optimistic and feels that there has been a shift and change in the way people are looking at it.

“In the last two years of the pandemic, we’ve learnt a lesson. It came at a heavy cost but suddenly people are discussing the topic. People are being compassionate towards nature, but it’s not enough, we need a lot more,” she stresses.