Stretch marks, cellulite, scars are markers of our growth: Sonam Kapoor

Sonam has talked about body shaming, stretch marks, the hard work and money spent behind a female celebrity’s public appearance.

Actor Sonam Kapoor doesn’t believe in mincing words when it comes to appearances and attitudes. In a fiery post for Buzzfeed India, the Ranjhana actor opened up about her initial days in the Hindi film industry, and poured her heart out on a range of issues, including body shaming, stretch marks, the hard work she’s put in the industry and even the money spent behind a female celebrity’s public appearance.

Sonam Kapoor wants people to be comfortable in their skin rather than imitating a celebrity. (HT Photo)

“Like every girl, I spent many nights through adolescence leaning into my bedroom mirror, wondering why my body looked nothing like it should. Why does my belly crease? Why do my arms jiggle? Why am I not fair? Why are there dark patches under my eyes? Why am I taller than boys my age? Do stretch marks ever go away? Will this cellulite stay forever?” she writes in the post.

Saawariya was Sonam kapoor’s debut film in Bollywood

She adds, “Itni lambi, itni kaali, a relative casually let slip at a family gathering. “Shaadi kaun karega?” It confirmed that my greatest insecurities were well-founded.”

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An actor known as Bollywood’s leading fashionista, Sonam is also critical of India’s obsession with the perfect body. “Despite being on the cusp of actually being a movie star, I didn’t believe I looked the part. I constantly worried that, if asked to dance in a backless choli, rolls of back fat would give me away as an imposter to the industry. Nobody lines up to buy tickets to see cellulite. So I embarked on a series of unhealthy behaviours. I dieted serially; sometimes South Beach, other times Atkins. Once, in desperation, I tried a diet that had me eating pineapples all day”

She adds, “I pushed myself too hard at spin classes, did power yoga for hours at a stretch, and developed an unhealthy relationship with food. Some weeks, desperate to drop a couple of kilos, I would simply not eat. At 18, I went on a date that I thought went well. Later, the boy told our mutual friend that “Sonam is too big”. I didn’t eat for a day.

(Now, thanks to those dumbass teenage decisions, I’m stuck with acidity for life.)”

Questioning our ideas of beauty, she writes, “I know now that there’s nothing wrong with stretch marks, cellulite, or scars. They’re markers of our growth. There’s beauty in their realness.”

She also thanks the strong women in her life, “All the women who’ve championed me have taught me that kind, genuine support can change your friend’s or sister’s or colleague’s life.”

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