While controversies surrounding racism in Bollywood have persisted over the years, the industry has also been graced by some dark beauties like Kajol. Priyanka ChopraSmita Patil, Sameera Reddy and Bipasha Basu. Each of them has defied stereotypes and redefined conventional beauty standards, proving that talent and charisma go far beyond skin tone.A similar case was once shared by a veteran actor Smita Jaykar When he recalled his first meeting with Priyanka Chopra. Known for his work in Hindi and Marathi cinema, Jaykar worked with Priyanka in the 2004 film ‘Kismat’.
Smita Jaykar’s shocking first meeting with Priyanka Chopra
In an old interview with Filmymantra Media, he spoke about his initial impression of the actor and how it changed over time. He recalled, “I did one of Priyanka’s early films with her, ‘Kismat’. He was very thin, thin and dark. They introduced me and Mohan Joshi as our daughter in the film. When I saw him, I said: “My God.” At that moment, it seemed like nothing. I wondered how these people became heroes.“
Smita Jaykar has changed the perception of Priyanka Chopra
However, Priyanka soon proved him wrong in the most obvious way. “Cut, Priyanka Chopra was wow. I thought, what has this girl done? She became a complete diva. So you can’t judge anyone and say, ‘Yaar, yeh kisko leke aaye ho’. You never know when someone’s destiny will change. What an actress, wonderful!” added Jaykar.
Priyanka Chopra on fighting colorism and body shame
On the other hand, Priyanka Chopra herself has often spoken about dealing with colorism and body shame in her early years. In an interview with the BBC, she said: “They called me ‘black cat’, ‘dark’. I mean, what does ‘dark’ even mean in a country where we’re literally brown? I thought I wasn’t pretty enough. I thought I should work a lot harder, even though I might be more talented than some of my peers. But I accepted it because it was very standardized.”
