Pushpa Impossible Indraxi Kanjilal slams body shaming: "Nobody else has a say in my Body"

Pushpa Impossible actor Indraxi Kanjilal feels that no one can ever be perfect for everyone. She believes that people tend to find flaws in others and judge them on various aspects and disguise it in the name of beauty standards.

She said, “I think beauty standards are a myth. I feel like beauty standards are just that—a myth. I mean, I could look at someone and be like, ‘Oh my God, that person is so pretty,’ and society would say, ‘Oh my God, that person isn’t pretty,’ or even call them ugly just because they don't match society’s beauty standards. But when I look at that person, I only see their beauty. I don’t see whether they match those standards or not. I think beauty standards are extremely pressurizing because they’re thrown upon us.”

Sharing her own experience, when she had put on a little weight, she confessed that she was called chubby. She said, “Recently, last year, I gained a little weight. And before that, I was really, really thin. I was underweight. And when I was underweight, everyone used to tell me, ‘Oh my God, you’re so thin,’ even my relatives. They would say, ‘What happened to you? Why aren’t you eating?’ Then last year, I gained about 5 to 6, or maybe 7, kgs. And suddenly everyone started telling me, ‘Oh my God, you’ve become chubby,’ or ‘That doesn’t look good; you need to lose weight right now.’”

“People started making fun of me for gaining that weight. And I just didn’t know what to do—because when I gain weight, I’m too heavy. When I lose weight, I’m too thin. So I can never be perfect,” she added.

It was then that the realization led her to a turning point. She said, “I thought, ‘Whatever I am, however my body is—as long as I’m comfortable with it—nobody else has a say in it.’ I don’t care if someone thinks I’m ugly or that I don’t fit into their idea of beauty. Because I’m happy with myself. That’s what matters. I love myself. And everyone else should love themselves too, irrespective of society’s beauty standards.”

Indraxi believes the problem is not just in the entertainment industry but with the society at large. She said, “Everyone in society is insecure about their looks,” she said. “Even my friends who are really pretty often feel like they’re not enough. That’s what beauty standards do—they make you feel like you’re never enough.”

I think beauty standards are a myth. I feel like beauty standards are just that—a myth

- Indraxi Kanjilal

When asked whether beauty has always been a painful criterion for actresses, she didn’t hesitate. She said, “At least that’s what I think. And it is true. Because since I was young, every time I watched television or films, I used to see these Bollywood or Hollywood actresses, and I used to watch their work. Flawless. They were so beautiful. And whenever I used to see them, I would think, why? Why don’t I look like them? How are they so pretty? And why am I not that pretty? And as a matter of fact, I know that they also had to do a lot just to fit that beauty standard or to look like that. You know, they had to maintain a lot of things.”

And she admitted that beauty comes from a lot of pain. She said, “You have to diet all the time, go to the gym, eat less, or eat something that you don’t even like. Or just spend your life trying to look like something you actually are not. Or get plastic surgeries that are very popular these days. Like, if someone is not comfortable with something, if they are insecure about certain features on their face, they just change it. They go for plastic surgeries.”

“I’m like, whatever you are naturally, it is so beautiful. Of course, I’m not someone to comment on all of that. If you’re insecure, you have the right to change your body, your face. It is your decision to make. Nobody else has a say in that. Of course, I believe in that. But it is painful,” she added.

She pointed out how these expectations impact careers too. “If you’re a little overweight, just a little overweight, like say you’re 60 kgs, you’re not getting any work because you’re sidelined. Or only a few kinds of films you can do. For example, Sonakshi Sinha, I think she’s a very good actress. But she is sidelined most of the time. She gets offered roles where an ‘obese girl’ is needed, rather than roles that showcase her actual talent. They just see the outer core of her being a little overweight, a little curvy, and that’s what they see.”

“But I think she’s very beautiful. She’s a very talented actress. But she doesn’t get as many opportunities as skinny actresses who fit the typical beauty standards,” she added.

She stressed that the only way forward is when the society as a whole starts rejecting these norms and embracing self-acceptance. “You don’t have to change yourself to be liked or to be seen as a beautiful person, because you already are,” Indraxi ended.