Remember the golden Khan kid with dark locks coming on his forehead, and a smile that made us swoon? Yes, Fardeen Khan is the one who is back in the news and not for a good reason. Recently some pictures of him started doing rounds where he had gained much weight, and people belittled him for it on social media.
Fardeen Khan after weight gain
Khan had the good sense to ignore it, but then, when things went a little overboard and he gave a fitting reply to all those haters who thought body shaming was cool.
DEAR ALL,
NOT ASHAMED NEITHER SHAMED. NOT OFFENDED. NOT DEPRESSED. NOT BLIND EITHER. AM I HAPPY?? EMPHATICALLY!!!! INFACT, LIVING THE HAPPIEST CHAPTER THUS FAR WITH LBS TO SHOW FOR IT.
HAPPY TO HAVE BEEN THE WEEKENDS ENTERTAINMENT FOR ALL YOU TROLLERS. IF YOU HAVE HAD ENOUGH FUN PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO LOOK AT YOUR OWN REFLECTION. IF TROLLING IS WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL BETETR ABOUT YOURSELF, YOU HAVE TO SERIOUSLY THINK ANOUT YOU FUTURE PROSPECTS. MY BEST WISHES.
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO SPOKE AGAINST MINDLESS TROLLING PLEASE RAISE YOUR VOICES. THIS WORLDWIDE BEHAVIORAL PATTERN ON THE INTERNET IS DISTURBING EVEN THOUGH I BELIEVE IN ABSOLUTELY FREE SPEECH AND OPINIONS. BEING A REALIST, I WILL CAUTION THAT ALL WE CAN HOPE TO ACHIEVE BY SPEAKING OUT…IS THAT THE NEXT TIME A PERSON TROLLS PURELY FOR THEIR OWN AMUSEMENT, HE OR SHE PAUSES TO CONSIDER THEIR OWN MORAL AND ETHICAL CODE. I ALSO WANT THEM TO HONESTLY ANSWER TO THEMSELVES A VERY RELEVANT QUESTION. “WOULD THEY STILL FEEL EMPOWERED TO TROLL IF THE ANONYMITY OFFERED BY SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ON THE INTERNET DID NOT EXIST???? I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT 99 % WOULD NOT HAVE THE GUTS TO…….IT PROVES THAT THEY ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A BUNCH OF COWARDS. I HOPE THEY THINK ABOUT THAT THE NEXT TIME…..
ENOUGH SAID FOR NOW…..I AM SURE YOU ALL HAD A FEW LAUGHS AT MY EXPENSE TOO…I MUST CONFESS I DID TOO….THERE IS A SAYING ” BLESSED IS HE WHO CAN LAUGH AT HIMSELF FOR HE SHALL NEVER CEASED TO BE AMUSED” MORE IMPORTANTLY, I BELIEVE THE RIGHT TO LAUGH AT ANOTHER IS EARNED BY HAVING THE COURAGE TO LAUGH AT YOURSELF. BESIDES LIFE IS TOO SHORT AND WOULD MAKE OUR EXISTENCE UNBEARABLY DULL AND SERIOUS IF WE DIDNT..
LASTLY, TO ALL MY DEAREST FANS AND WELL WISHERS,
YOUR SENSITIVITY, KINDNESS, AND LOVE EXPRESSED THROUGH YOUR POSTS AND TWEETS WERE MOST TOUCHING. I CANT THANK YOU ENOUGH BUT IT WAS UNNECCESARY AS I AM SURE YOU ARE EQUALLY SHOCKED AND DISAPPOINTED. I JUST WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW THAT AFTER A VERY LONG TIME I AM IN A GREAT SPACE IN MY LIFE. ALL I ASK IS FOR YOU TO BE HAPPY FOR ME AND EXPECT NOT TO BE DISAPPOINTED FOR LONG.
AS ALWAYS MY BEST WISHES ARE WITH YOU AND THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE.
LOTS OF LOVE,
FARDEEN
This incident got us thinking how fickle is fame in the tinsel world of entertainment, and how shallow the standards of appearance, irrespective of gender. The silver lining on the cloud, however, are celebs like Fardeen Khan, who own their haters in the politest way possible.
Let’s take a look at some other Bollywood celebrities who got body shamed and came around with a reply that shut their haters once and for all.
Zariin Khan
Zariin recently shared her picture from her teens, with a heartfelt message on how she faced body shaming in those times. She even got criticized for being a fat version of Katrina Kaif, when she made her debut in Veer. Her haters conveniently forgot her stellar performance and focused only on her weight which she had taken great pains to reduce.
“Came across these pics of mine from school and college days. (White one was in std 9th & pink one was right after my std 12th exams). When i look at these pics i feel proud of myself today not that i felt any lesser about myself back then. Inspite of being so big i never let people’s comments or ideas about me bother me. Because it’s my life and my body and only i have the right to decide what i’m gonna do with it. Then one day i decided let me try how it feels to be a little lighter and hence started my weight loss journey. It wasn’t easy at all but everytime i looked at the progress in the mirror, i got the push to do more. I had lots more energy than before and i was loving every bit of this new person i was transforming into. When I became a part of this industry, I had lost all my weight. Infact I was asked to put on weight for my first film to look the character. Unfortunately i was criticised to no end for my weight but again i never let that get to me. How could i? Those people had not seen me like the way i am in these pics here. And for me everything was just an achievement to reach from where I was to where I am.
I continued on my fitness journey irrespective because fitness for me is a way of life now. Along with the weight loss came a lot of stretch mark but instead of feeling ashamed of it and trying to hide it, I believe in flaunting it. It makes me feel like a tigress with her stripes. I have come a long way in this journey of fitness and I still have a long way to go… But it’s always been only for myself and not because of people shaming me!”
Parineeti Chopra
She wowed friends and fans alike when she came back with her fitter version. The Ishaqzaade actress confessed that she had been body shamed innumerable times. She worked out only to be fitter and healthier, and not to fall into the narrow standards of beauty. She was quoted saying in an interview;
“This (body shaming) will soon become a past. Everything comes in phases. If you yourself are not comfortable about your body, do something about it. If you are comfortable, let it be. Other people have no right to comment anyway,”
Sonakshi Sinha
This witty actress too faced much backlash for her weight when she made her debut with Dabangg. She came back fitter and leaner, but refused to abide by the skinny standards of beauty. She adorned the cover of May 2015 Vogue, gave a punchy article on how she loved her curves, and encouraged every girl to feel the same way about herself. Her tweet says it all about her devil-may-care attitude and we love her for that.
“To all those who keep commenting on my weight, whether it’s a full picture, or a close up where you can’t see jack, take a good look at this picture…Now get this: 1) This ain’t ever gonna be me. 2) Get over it. 3) I wish you could see which finger I hold up for shallow and idiotic people like yourself.”
Vidya Balan
The talented actress gained weight for her biographical movie The Dirty Picture, and struggled to lose the flab for a long time, dealing with the ridicules all along. Eventually, she embraced the way she looked, and gave it back to the haters, her way.
“A fat girl always feels like a boy will not like her because of her weight. But there is only so much a boyfriend, a husband and your family can do. But I know that love is non negotiable and at the end of the day, you have to come to terms with who you are…My weight is nobody’s business.”
Huma Qureshi
Huma’s way of punching her haters straight on the face was simply kickass! She featured on the cover of Femina with a “perfect” mannequin in front of her, and stated boldly;
“I don’t owe you my perfection! My body, my rules”
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
The most beautiful woman who has won us laurels and accolades in world too received unwanted negative attention and unnecessary flak on her post-pregnancy weight, when she decided to take her own time to get back into a healthy shape. Her statement in The Gulf instilled some sense into the haters, and her Cannes 2014 appearance shut them all up as they gazed at the diva with their jaws hanging open.
“In this industry it comes as standard when an actress becomes a mother the focus isn’t on her health, it’s on how fast she loses her weight. I don’t worry about this; to me my well-being and the health of my family is more important than focusing on going back to my pre-pregnancy body in miracle time.”
Arpita Khan
Though not in mainstream cinema, she is the darling sister of Salman Khan, who recently lashed out at her haters who were constantly rebuking her for her skin colour and weight. More power to you Arpita!
“Hey, I would request all our well wishers not to waste their time by reacting to random jobless, insecure, jealous, people. Insecurities & jealousy can make you lose the plot at times. Just ignore them & move on don’t react to their comments as then you are giving them more importance.
And for those people who have an issue with the following: my pictures, my family, my weight, my face, my colour & what I am doing with my baby boy & how we are taking care of him & my husband & our lifestyle. I wonder how jobless or bored you are that you are busy following or visiting a profile you don’t like & have so many issues with.
Why don’t you do something better with your time & life rather than stooping down to a level of a barking dog & displaying a very low line character of yourself .. Anyway have a great day God bless.”
Richa Chadha
The Sarbjit actress too revealed about her eating disorders and how she encountered the vicious strike of body shaming. Contrary to fat shaming, she was skinny shamed as she revealed how one of her co-stars had advised the director to “pad her up” as she was too thin for the role. She felt guilty for being hungry, and then felt guilty for eating too much.
Hats-off to these celebrities for standing up to no-face entities who chose to stay behind their laptops and use social media as a tool to ridicule and shame others.
Author: Kadambari Srivastava
