Actress Priyanka Chopra talks about colourism in Bollywood, regrets doing fairness cream ads

Priyanka Chopra Jonas faced colourism and spoke about being lightened for the screen in films. The Indian actress also revealed that she regrets being part of ‘damaging’ skin fairness ads during the mid-2000s.

“When I joined the movie business, if you were fair, you were guaranteed some sort of success or casting, but if you were darker... and I’m not even that dark. For darker girls, it was like, well, let’s lighten you up. I was lightened up in many movies,” Priyanka was speaking to Dax Shephard on the podcast Armchair Expert.

The star, who is married to Nick Jonas, shared that the make-up put on her and bright lighting used to look lighter than she was on screen.

She added, “We were taught that damaging bullsh*t. Even I got caught up into it and I look back on that, the commercial was so damaging. I’m darker skinned and this guy comes in, selling flowers, and he doesn’t even look at me. I start using this cream and I get a job, I get the guy and all my dreams come true. That was like the mid-2000s,” she said.

Priyanka is now a big star in Hollywood and she lives with her husband, singer Nick Jonas and daughter, Malti Marie Jonas. Priyanka will next be seen in Prime Video ‘Citadel’ and in the rom-com ‘Love Again’. (IANS)