The "Dabangg" star says self defence mechanism should be taught to girls from a very young age as it is extremely important in today's times.
"Schools, colleges, should incorporate self defence, martial arts as a subject for girls from a very young age. I feel it is very important in today's day and age," Sonakshi told reporters here.
The actress, who will be seen as a fearless woman in her upcoming film "Akira", feels girls should stand up for themselves.
"When you see the film, there are a lot of instances in it, showing a lot of girls put through (difficult situations) and how you should be able to handle it yourself.
The 29-year-old "Rowdy Rathore" actress quipped that when she was in school, nobody messed with her because she was a 'gundi'.
"In school and college, I was myself a 'gundi' so no one used to mess with me. They used to look at me and say 'Don't go near her'," she added.
Directed by AR Murugadoss, "Akira" is a remake of 2011 Tamil film "Mouna Guru". The action-thriller features filmmaker Anurag Kashyap in a negative role and also stars Konkona Sensharma.
In the film, Sonakshi will be seen doing high-octane stunts. Though the actress has worked in a lot of action films right from her debut "Dabangg" to her latest film outing "Tevar", Sonakshi found it difficult to throw kicks and punches.
"It was difficult. I went through a lot of injuries and it was painful as hell. You wake up soar every single day and some part or the other is always hurting but it was all worth it."
The film is set to release on September 2.