A general understanding of what is beautiful has been dictated by society for the longest time now. While mainstream media continues to endorse a narrow yardstick of beauty, a distorted single idea of what is beautiful has been firmly cemented.
So, in an effort to become all these things, people often discount their own natural structure and put themselves through mental agony and physical strain. These body image issues are far more accentuated in the case of celebrities as they are constantly under the spotlight of shutterbugs and always feel the pressure to maintain their appearances.
There has been much uproar off late regarding body image issues where in stars have created a space for body positivity by speaking up about the issues they have faced.
Ileana D'Cruz has revealed she does feel the pressure of looking perfect always as an actress. The "Barfi" star said she struggled to accept her "unusual" body type and has dealt with issues for a very long time.
"There was a point when I was super skinny. And I have had body issues for very long. I was at my lightest weight and even then I felt 'Oh my God I am so fat.' I am not too open about my body type. I have an unusual body type," Ileana said.
When asked if there is added pressure as an actress to look at her best always, Ileana said, "Absolutely. When going out, I look in the mirror, like any other normal girl, and feel 'I look alright'. Then I get slammed by paparazzi. I say to myself why do I look so different in photographs?"
Richa Chadha, recently in an interview with Mumbai Mirror spoke out on her body image insecurities, the guilt associated with feeling hungry and an eating disorder she was earlier struggling with.
"There is a lot of pressure because everyone is judging you on the basis of how you look. On screen your face is magnified so people are pointing to your nose, eyes, jawline, smile and even your eyelashes,” Richa told the newspaper.
She went on to add that the reason she chose to speak about the issue is “because I know not just actors but housewives and teenagers who're struggling with this poor little rich girl problem. At a time when the West is celebrating curves, we are ordering fat melting medicines and living on supplements which can mess up a woman's hormones and childbearing ability and lead to sperm and hair loss in men.”
Actor Fardeen Khan blasted people for trolling him on social media for his weight gain and said he is not ashamed of his body size. Recently, a picture of the "Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya" star showing his weight gain went viral. It even became a subject of memes on Twitter and Facebook.
He took to Facebook and posted an open letter stating, "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 better about yourself, you have to seriously think about you future prospects. My best wishes," he wrote.
A number of celebrities have broken their silence and expressed their annoyance on the unnerving matter of body shaming.
In a recent interview to DNA, actor Huma Qureshi spoke in detail about weight issues and why she has never been apologetic of the way she looks.
“I was never apologetic about how I looked. I will not be apologetic about how I look now as well. I am not going to feel sorry for who I was because even if I was curvier, I was still doing films and was still a part of the business,” Huma told the paper.
Describing how body-shaming is prevalent in the society today, she said, “If you’re too skinny, you’re anorexic. If you’re fat, you are also not acceptable...This is bullying other people and telling them that something’s not right with them. That’s wrong. Forget body shaming, people also talk about colour of the skin. If you are too dark or too tall or even too short, you can’t be accepted fully. So, basically, are we supposed to be clones of each other with perfect hair and a certain weight? Imagine how boring that would be.”