Sai Pallavi, a renowned actress from the South Indian film industry, recently turned down an offer to feature in a fairness cream commercial. She actively spoke about her decision and prior insecurities regarding the way she looked in an interview with Behindwoods, a Telugu website.
In the interview, Pallavi reveals her initial insecurities with the way she looked on screen. The actress recalls being pressurised by the set beauty standards that any actress is supposed to meet.
What will I do with the money I get from such an ad? I’ll go home and eat three chapatis or rice, go around in my car. I don’t have other big needs. I see if I can contribute to the happiness of people around me or if I can say that these standards we see are wrong. This is Indian colour. We can’t go to foreigners and ask them why they’re white. We can’t look at them and think we want that. That’s their skin colour and this is ours.Sai Pallavi, in her interview. Translated by HuffPost India.
This step taken by Pallavi might be soon forgotten but the message of self-awareness and that of self-acceptance will resonate for quite a while.
Regardless of one’s gender, people are constantly making efforts to look their best, sometimes to meet societal standards. The sad part is that this thought is further encouraged through media using undertones in the mass content which suggests that one needs to look good to land a good job or for a desirable love life.
Sai Pallavi has done her part by not feeding into the propaganda of artificiality. Now, it is your turn to make peace with your skin tone and appreciate the way you appear.
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