Seems like it will take more than dropping 'fair' from a beauty product to fight racism in our country. The change has to come within, from society. Amidst the racism debate that has been going on for a while now, many of our B-town celebs opened up on the discrimination that they’ve faced for their skin colour. Recently Shah Rukh Khan’s daughter Suhana Khan addressed the trolls that were targeted on her skin tone and shut them down, once and for all. Now, designer-actor Masaba Gupta opened up on her experiences of racism, bullying, and discrimination. Though she calls out the fat-shaming bullies and takes the social media trolls head-on, there was a time when she had been subjected to racism in her childhood.
Born to West Indian Cricketer Vivian Richards and Veteran actress Neena Gupta, Masaba was bullied because of her dark skin colour and diverse parents. In an interview with a leading daily, the designer said that this affected her as a child. “It was reactions of friends and acquaintances, people who you thought had your back that affected me. A friend of mine brought up the colour of my skin every time I asked her about what to wear, what subject to study or what sport I should play. I thought it was bizarre. However, more than the colour of my skin, it was about the relationship of my parents. I remember being called a b*stard child a lot. Lots of boys in my school will ask ‘is she the ba**ard?’ I didn’t understand what it meant and I went and asked my mother when I was young and she explained it to me by the book. She said this is what it means and be prepared to get more of this,” said Masaba.
Recalling the horrific incidents of racism, body-shaming and bullying, the designer shared yet another incident. “ I played professional tennis in school and I was permitted to come late to the class as I was playing for the state. The boys in the class will open my bag, take out my underwear and toss it around. They would make fun of my shorts because I was a bigger girl. They would be like ‘is it all black inside from the colour of her skin’. You think you outgrow it but you don’t,” she concluded.
However, the designer turned actress is quite successful at what she does and promotes body positivity with her designs and social media posts. She recently penned a heartfelt note on her ethnicity while congratulating US Vice President Kamala Harris. On the work front, the designer has also forayed into the acting arena with Netflix’s slice of lime series ‘Masaba Masaba’ alongside actress-mother Neena and we can’t wait for its season 2 already!
(Source- Spotboye)
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