The stupidity of not casting a dark-hued actor to play a character campaigning forself-acceptance is telling of Bollywood's smug chauvinism
Nidhi Sunil Pic/ Isabelli Lombardini
The irony isn't lost on Kerala-born, now New York-based model and actor Nidhi Sunil, who like Latika is a trained lawyer, ambitious, and harbours a feminist point of view. She is also dark skinned. The character played by Bhumi Pednekar in the latest Bollywood grosser Bala, advocates self-acceptance, often recounting haunting memories of being called "kaali" as a 10-year-old. A propos, Sunil, 31, remembered the tag "kaalia" from high school in a personal piece she wrote for Dazed Beauty this August.
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Sunil has starred in Ishaan Nair's Kaash, presented by actor Irrfan Khan, directors Mira Nair and Shimit Amin, but the 2015 film is yet to find a commercial release in India. She has repeatedly spoken of being turned away by model management firms and agents since she began her career in 2011. "I was told that I had been 'the darkest girl ever cast' as a brand ambassador by a major hair-care brand in India," she says candidly, adding that things are improving slowly in the Indian fashion collective. "The industry is much more welcoming of girls like me," she thinks, alluding to a hit Bollywood film that's doing disservice to the change.
Bala is naïve in its casting; Bhumi Pednekar knocks the ball out of the park with a capable performance as Latika, but she's the cosmetically-styled keynote that simply does not fit. That's where the problem begins, as does the irritation of an evolved viewer.
Not only is she painted five shades darker with inconsistent makeup and floats in pearly white salwar-kurtas, the shifting shades of foundation in Don't Be Shy Again magically bring her closer to her original light-brown skin tone.
Nidhi Sunil, model and actor
I think the team [Bala] may have had good intentions but it's clear they've coasted on the subject of colourism without understanding what the subject means to the millions of dark-skinned girls who are told, 'they are less than' because of their skin. Films have the power to change people's mindsets, and by actively casting a lighter skin actor over someone who regularly lives with the experience of having dark skin, is an opportunity lost for us as a community to see our truth on screen. It was no secret that your skin colour decided if your career would transition into films or not. I've worked with the Indian editions of Vogue, GQ, Harper's Bazaar, Elle, and featured in campaigns for Manish Malhotra, Manish Arora, etc. I have moved my base to New York after acquiring management here.
Clint Fernandes, makeup and hair artist
Latika's makeup is downright terrible! The selection of foundation is wrong; the product base could have been better emulsified into the skin. It looks unnatural. Bhumi is beautiful and talented; I wonder why she insists on being typecast in colourism doublespeak; Lust Stories is another case in point. It's clearly a case of favouritism. She happens to be a saleable actor right now. Camps supersede script prerequisites. Earlier, in two out of 10 projects, clients would want me to make models look fairer. Things have got better in the last three years.
Hvovi Bhagwagar, psychotherapist
I watched Bala with my son. It was entertaining, but the message of self-love didn't sit well with me. He pointed out the last straw in colour inconsistency as the climax song-and-dance played on screen, where Bhumi wears a colour closer to her natural skin tone, mocking the intelligence of the audience. Colour favouritism is a real issue. I have clients approach me because they are bullied in classrooms and online platforms for their colour. 'Why didn't you add a lighter filter to your photograph?' is now commonplace in cyber-bullying. A worried mother visited me recently to discuss how she caught her daughter, in second grade, rub talcum powder on her face to 'look pretty like a Barbie'. There's immense pressure to have flawless light skin and you'd be surprised how many intelligent, affluent men and women are using skin-lightening supplements.
Payal Khandwala, designer
Bala's poignant message of self-acceptance slips through the cracks. Bollywood is after all, a business, where the end goal is to make money. Change must start at the top. Influential actors and filmmakers have to push the conversation around diversity and acceptance. If they had signed a dark-skinned actor—we have quite a few—to play the part, she would've brought a distinct edge to the performance. That would have been a significantly bolder statement to make. What message are we sending women who have fought colour bias and found inaccurate representation in media or films? It's shameful.
Personally, I think my signature solid, jewel tones look beautiful on dark Indian skin, and I gravitate towards casting appropriate models for my campaigns. My enthusiasm though doesn't always find appreciation.
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Simran Lal and Raul Rai
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