Keira Knightley doesn't care if women hate her - because it is natural for females to loathe celebrities of the same gender.

The 23-year-old insists it doesn't bother her if women detest her, as the backlash is part of being in the spotlight.

She says, "If you put yourself in the public forum, it's what you put yourself up for. I don't need to read it."

"Manipulation is something women do a lot. Women get obsessed with other women - love them or hate them. That line is very easy to cross."

The Atonement star also responded to a quote from British newspaper The Guardian, which read: "If you want to befriend a woman, ask her the question: 'What do you think of Keira Knightley?' In the resulting torrent of bile and loathing, you will bond."

Knightley added: "I'm doing a good thing for women then."