On Wednesday evening, the 17-year-old attended the 5th annual AACTA Awards in Sydney, where she chatted to the Daily Mail Australia.
Bindi finally spoke about ongoing speculation about the alleged rift between her paternal grandfather, Bob Irwin, and her family following the tragic death of her father Steve in 2006.
“Everyone deals with grief differently,” she told the website. “When my dad passed away he chose to distance himself from everything that dad loved the most.”
Before adding, “At the moment we’re really just respecting his wishes because he hasn’t had anything to do with us for a long time and he decided his own path. That’s important so good for him.”
Following the death of his son, Steve, Bod Irwin has distanced himself from the family.
In September 2006 at just 44 years old, Steve sadly passed away after suffering a fatal injury from a sting-ray while filming a wildlife documentary.
Bob Irwin, who left Australia Zoo in 2008, has admitted he isn’t in contact with his crocodile hunter’s son’s kids but he is still very proud of Bindi’s recent win.
“I don’t like to talk about family matters but no we are not in contact,” he said to the Herald Sun earlier this month. “It’s sad but it’s just the way things are.”
Bob wishes he was closer to Steve’s kids.
Meanwhile when Woman’s Day caught up with the talented dancer at the event, she was still on cloud nine from her Dancing with the Stars triumph.
Despite raking in a whopping $USD350,000 pay cheque, the Aussie local won’t be splashing out on any extravagant purchases.
“For me, my heart and soul lies in conservation so everything that I make and everything that I do goes directly back into wildlife conservation. I have a non-profit organisation called Wildlife Warriors so that’s where my money will go,” she explained to Woman’s Day on how she’ll be spending her prize money.
As for how she keeps her long-distance romance with boyfriend Chandler Powell strong, it’s all about staying in touch, with a traditional twist.
“The one thing you have to understand is that it I challenging. For me, I try to as much as I can call and message and I also write a lot of letters,” she said.
“I write three of four letters a week, actual hand-written letters. And I think that’s really important. It’s one of those lost arts in life. I try to do that and to remember to be there for each other.”
So what does the future hold for this unstoppable force?
“I’d love to [get into acting]. I’ve filmed a couple of movies over the years and it has been a lot of fun. So I think that’s something I’d certainly like to try a little more,” Bindi told us.
“I just want to be able to say ‘yes’ to as many opportunities as possible. To be able to really spread my message and build a platform where I can get that through to people.”
Write on! Bindi told Woman’s Day she keeps her long-distance romance with Chandler Powell strong by penning “three of four letters a week” to her man.
