It is not the first time that Nandita Das has spoken about Bollywood’s obsession with fair skin. She has been advocating skin indiscrimination ever since she entered the entertainment industry. Recently Nawazuddin Siddiqui too opened up on the subject after a casting director passed unflattering remarks on him because of his skin colour.
It is not the first time that Nandita Das has spoken about Bollywood’s obsession with fair skin. She has been advocating skin indiscrimination ever since she entered the entertainment industry. Recently Nawazuddin Siddiqui too opened up on the subject after a casting director passed unflattering remarks on him because of his skin colour. Das spoke in Siddiqui’s defense and shared her take on the subject.
“It is no surprise that Nawaz’s skin colour would have impeded his career,” she told DNA. “All around us — be it films, television, magazines, hoardings, ads, everywhere we have ‘fair’ people, in a country that is largely dark!”
She also said that fairness creams are responsible for mistreatment of dark-skinned actors. “Every skin care product has a skin lightening element,” she asserted. “Dark-skinned people are often made to feel inadequate, right from their childhood. “Having supported the ‘Dark is Beautiful’ campaign for the last four years, I’m aware of so many more stories of discrimination. At least, many doors have opened for people like Nawaz and me, but what about those who are pushed to the wall as most doors just close on them?”
Das’s upcoming directorial venture Manto – a biopic on controversial Indo-Pakistani writer Saadat Hasan Manto – stars Nawazuddin SIddiqui in the titular role. She also added that she is happy to see Nawaz overcome this prejudice despite the challenges he must have faced in his career that spans over 10 years.
