Tampa Bay (Florida), April 26 (IANS) Actress Priyanka Chopra, who has always lent support to women empowerment, spoke about the importance of educating a girl child as part of a ‘Girl Rising Project’ session at the ongoing International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Weekend and Awards here.

“Fortunately, I come from a family where there is no difference between a girl and boy child. But to bring a change, the mindset of the people has to be changed. A girl child is not a burden, nd I would like to say if you educating one girl is like educating a family,” Priyanka said here.

Before the session took off, a short film on the same subject was showcased here.

Veteran actress Shabana Azmi, who is known for her work towards the emancipation of the girl child, was part of the session, and she spoke about violence against women.

“I would like to raise this controversial issue which is violence against women. If a girl gets married and if she is not happy, she is advised to make up and go back to the family to keep the marriage alive.

“I want to say violence against women should not be tolerated,” she said.