Bigg Boss 16 contestant Sumbul Touqeer recently talked about the discrimination she had to face due to her dark-complexion and how it affected her. She also said that while shooting for Imlie she was on the receiving end of racist remarks from people.

Sumbul told a leading news website, "When I bagged Imlie also things didn’t change instantly. People would call up and say 'Arre kaisi ladki ko cast kar liya, kaali hai (what kind of a girl did you cast, she is black)'. I had felt very bad that day and I cried a lot but after the telecast, things started to change. Our opening TRP numbers were 2.2 and the number just went up from there. It never came down till the time I was a part of it. People forgot how I looked, they just noticed my work. The people, who disliked me also started praising me. I feel this is all based on convenience."

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She also recalled her initial days in Mumbai and said that was focused on becoming a dancer and had no interest in becoming an actor. "My initial days were very tough. I started as a child actor and whenever I went for auditions they only wanted fair-skinned actors. The requirement was always for fair child actors. It was very demeaning and insulting. It was something that I never appreciated and did not like. I had started to believe that if you are dark-skinned you can’t be a lead heroine. All the heroines, if you see them all, were mostly fair. I don’t have anything against anyone but this is what I started to believe. But this stereotype broke when I bagged Imlie."

Sumbul became a household name after playing the lead role in the popular TV show Imlie. The actress then gained more popularity through Salman Khan's Big Boss 16. 

(Source: ETimes)