Smrithi Srikanth recalls racism during modelling days

• Smrithi Srikanth plays Laxmi, Akshay Kumar’s sister in the movie Raksha Bandhan.
• She addressed complaints that the movie was retrograde and discussed her views on racism.

Smrithi Srikanth, who made her Bollywood debut in Raksha Bandhan starring Akshay Kumar, addressed complaints that the movie was retrograde. She also discussed her viewpoint on racism.

Raksha Bandhan, a movie starring Akshay Kumar, introduced Smrithi Srikanth as a new talent. Smrithi, who is from Delhi, plays Laxmi, Akshay Kumar’s sister. The other three sisters of the main character, Lala Kedarnath, are portrayed by Sadia Khateeb, Deepika Khanna, and Sahejmeen Kaur (Akshay).

Smrithi discussed her ideal film debut with Akshay Kumar and her views on colorism in the twenty-first century.

Also Read

Dia Mirza beams with happiness as she holds baby Avyaan

She recently posted a picture of her and her infant son Avyaan...

Smrithi, an accomplished dancer, co-starred with Aparshakti Khurana in the song Kudiye Ni. She made her major break in Bollywood thanks to the Aanand L Rai-directed film, which used phrases like “aamavas ki raat” to highlight the character’s dark skin.

In the movie, Laxmi has trouble finding a husband because of her skin. Does that render the movie retrograde?  “Even I have a dusky complexion in real. But for the character, my skin was toned down further to two more levels,” Smrithi shared.

Drawing examples from her own life, Smrithi said, “Even I have faced comments on my complexion since childhood. People used to mock and make fun of it.” When asked about what made her sign up for the project which may have highlighted use of racist remarks casually, Smrithi quickly defended, “When I was auditioning for this character, I read the lines and felt that it is the fact. There are people who talk like ‘dhoop me mat ja kaali par jayegi (don’t step out in the sun or else you will get tan)’. They have this mentality. But, as a person, what I feel about myself is much more important than what others think.”

“When I read the script, what I liked about the character is that she is very much confident in her own skin and colour. In the movie, Laxmi says ‘black is back’. She is someone who loves her colour and is very much happy with herself. Uske liye who Kareena Kapoor hai (she considers herself Kareena Kapoor),” she added.

Also Read

Ranbir Kapoor grooves to Brahmastra’s Deva Deva

Alia Bhatt tweeted a photo of Ranbir Kapoor on their "babymoon." Alia...

Does racism exist in the entertainment industry, especially for newcomers? She said, “At times in audition, they do categorise you based on your skin complexion. At certain places, you will find things like ‘we only want fair complexion’ mentioned during auditions. But then I also understand that it must be a demand of the character.”

“But I remember once I felt very bad while working on a modelling project. There were some events for a brand. I auditioned for it and got selected. There were like two parts to the project and I was taken for both. Unlike me, the rest of the girls were shortlisted for only one project. Hence, I asked them to increase my pay. But, what I got from them was sad. They reverted by saying that ‘they (the unnamed brand) do not hire dusky girls. But they hired you. If you want to be a part of the project then they will pay you less’. They basically preferred fairer girls. I literally felt bad that day, although it was some 5-6 years ago,” she recollected.