Body shaming in Bollywood: Vidya Balan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Sonakshi Sinha among stars who fought back

There’s a repugnant wave of body-shamers in most industries who believe they have the right to judge people based on their shape and dress size. Nowhere is this troll-like attack more pronounced than in Bollywood where actors are constantly working on their image on screen, even while contending with their own insecurities as haters who hide behind a mask of anonymity let lose contempt. It takes courage and confidence to get past the negativity and day-to-day expectation to look a certain way. Here’s a look at some stars who go against the grain, who own their image, and who fight back with finesse.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s reaction to the attacks against her for putting on weight after giving birth was a lesson in grace under pressure. She stayed quiet, calm and put her energy into what really mattered - herself and her family.

Sonam Kapoor Ahuja is known for her fashion style and her no-nonsense way of dealing with trolls. But it’s taken a while for her to come to terms with herself. In a candid chat with Arbaaz Khan on his chat show, Kapoor Ahuja spoke about being body shamed; being called too fat, too thin, too tall, too everything. They would often question her desirability. She’s learnt to tune out that noise.

Actress Tara Sutaria, who often posts pictures of herself on social media, has in the past opened up about being body shamed within the movie business. The star said she was labelled as anorexic at some point, and then was later shamed for gaining weight for her movie ‘Marjaavaan’. “People will go to say a lot of hurtful things to you. Such comments use to bother me a lot in the beginning but not anymore,” she was quoted as saying by a Bollywood news portal PinkVilla.

Ileana D’Cruz recently opened up about suffering from body dysmorphia, and depression as a consequence of it. During an Instagram interaction with her fans, when asked if she ever faced flak for having an “awkward” body, her response was curt and clear: “Firstly, I don’t have an ‘awkward’ body type. Nobody does. Secondly, yes, I have been criticised for my body type. But I am trying to learn to love myself for who I am and not try to conform to someone else’s ideals.”

Sherni’ star Vidya Balan has always flaunted a curvy figure and she's done it with style . Be it 'kahani' or 'Dirty Picture', Balan's work has always been about character rather thank looks.

During the release of Dabangg, Sonakshi Sinha’s stunning physical transformation was a major topic of conversation for movie buffs and fans. Her performance with co-star was Salman Khan received box office acclaim. Even though Sinha is a healthy individual and shares her love for working out with fans, she is often body-shamed. However, she reportedly made it clear that she doesn’t let the body-shamers get to her. According to Sinha, as someone who young girls look up to, she considers it more important to project a healthy body image.

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan's daughter, yet to make her debut, hit back at people trolling her for ‘dark skin’ Khan decided to go public with the hate she has been receiving and wrote powerful post about being called ugly. “I’ve been told I’m ugly because of my skin tone, by full grown men and women, since I was 12 years old,” Khan, 20, wrote. “Other than the fact that these are actual adults, what’s sad is that we are all Indian, which automatically makes us brown — yes we come in different shades but no matter how much you try to distance yourself from the melanin, you just can’t.” She also gave her haters a masterclass using the hashtag #endcolourism to promote her social media campaign against racism. “Hating on your own people just means that you are painfully insecure, I’m sorry if social media, Indian matchmaking or even your own families have convinced you, that if you’re not 5’7 and fair you’re not beautiful. I hope it helps to know that I’m 5’3 and brown and I am extremely happy about it and you should be too. #endcolourism,” said Khan.

In the beginning of her career, Parineeti Chopra was criticized for her weight, however she said that it did not affect her. She compared body-shaming to criticising something as natural as one's eye color. She was often shamed for her body type until she began her fat-to-fit transformation. Priyanka Chopra’s cousin was always a foodie and had repeatedly declared working out at gyms uninteresting. But the actress, who made her debut in 2012 with ‘Ishaaqzaade’, embarked on a lifestyle change to become fitter and healthier in December 2015.