- Madhuri Jain Grover claimed richer families having more children boosts prosperity
- Madhuri insisted she never stopped anyone from having children and noted many avoid having kids today
- She questioned if the poor truly run the country, linking economic power to wealth creators and employers
Recently ousted from Netflix's 'Lock Upp: Sach Ya Sazaa', Madhuri Jain Grover used a podcast appearance to double down on her controversial claim that richer families having more children would boost prosperity, while poorer families doing the same would deepen poverty.
The remarks came after actor Tejasswi Prakash pressed Madhuri on the logic behind her statement and pointed out that many people had found it insensitive.
Madhuri, who is married to former BharatPe co-founder and managing director Ashneer Grover, insisted that she had never sought to stop anyone from having children.
“I never stopped anyone from having children. In fact, the problem in today's generation is that they don't want to have children,” she said.
When Prakash argued that the poor also run the country, Madhuri pushed back sharply.
“It's great that the poor are also running the country. But do you really think that the country is actually run by the poor? Who is actually running the country? Do you seriously believe so?” she asked.
She then linked the functioning of the economy to those who create employment.
“Who are the ones giving employment to the rest of society?” Madhuri said.
She also dismissed some of the backlash as social-media victimhood. “People love playing victim on social media. ‘Arrey, you called us poor.' If you believe you are poor, then you will feel poor,” she said.
The controversy began during the first judgement day of the season, when Madhuri revealed that she and Ashneer had once considered having a third child but dropped the idea after opposition from their families.
“We wanted to have a third child, but we got influenced by our family's circumstances,” she said, adding that they later regretted the decision.
“We got influenced by Ashneer's mom's idea that two kids are enough, and later, when we wanted a third child, it was too late,” Madhuri said.
She then expanded the personal disclosure into a broader economic argument.
“If rich people have more kids, wealth will increase, and if poor people have more kids, poverty will increase,” she said.
Pressed on the remark after leaving the show, Madhuri did not soften her position. Instead, she defended it by arguing that wealth creators, employers and business owners play the larger role in driving the country's economy.
