12 Times Actors Dropped Truth Bombs And Gave Us A Realistic Picture Of The Film Industry

The 'woke culture' in the world has inspired Bollywood celebrities to be bold and fearless. Instead of holding back and maintaining good terms with Bollywood's cr¨¨me de la cr¨¨me, stars have come forward and spoken to the press about their experiences, struggles, and the film industry's hypocrisy.

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Be it Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who shared his brave story of surviving racism in Bollywood, or Vidya Balan's journey of battling fat-shaming like a true boss that she is, and fans have always lauded their courage and resilience.

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Here's a look at 12 such actors who didn't think twice before, giving us an accurate picture of the dark side of Bollywood and how they fought back and created their journey to stardom. Read on!

1. When Nawazuddin Siddiqui called out racism in Bollywood:

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In a conversation with Bollywood Hungama, ¡°I fought against it for many years, and I hope that dark-skinned actresses are made heroines; it's very important. I'm not even talking about skin color; there is a bias that exists in the industry which needs to end for better films to be made¡­ I was rejected for many years only because I'm short and look a certain way, although I can't complain now. But some so many other great actors fall prey to this kind of bias.¡±

2. When Seema Pahwa bared her heart out on unfair casting practices in Bollywood:

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Talking to Indiatimes, Pahwa said, ¡°When we talk about so-called commercial films which have stars, I didn¡¯t get work in those films. And even if I used to get roles, those were either smaller roles or servant roles, where I had to serve tea coffee in the frame and then go back. ¡±

3. When Sonam Kapoor spoke about pay disparity:

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In an interview with Hindustan Times, Sonam was quoted as saying, "I was told, ¡®You can afford to do so as you have a safety net. You come from a rich family.¡¯ I have been fending for myself since I was 18. It is hard for me also to say no to money, but as someone who feels it is not morally right to get less paid than male stars, I don¡¯t work for such producers."

4. When Anushka Sharma questioned the concept of 'desirable' and called out ageism in Bollywood:

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In a conversation with Economic Times, Anushka Sharma royally questioned the concept of ageism. She said, "They're still amazing and cool, and I have no problem with that. But why is it that women are only okay till they are "young and desirable"? So desirable means what? There's a sexual connotation attached. So we are looking at women in that way in films only."

5. Priyanka Chopra on fat-shaming and unrealistic standards of beauty for women in the film industry:

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In Victoria's Secret Voices Podcast as a guest, PC said, ¡°Being raised in the industry and having a tight lens on what my shape was, what my figure was or what my measurements were, minutely looking at every part of me, I kind of grew up for a while in my 20s thinking that was normal. Like most young people, you think about these unrealistic standards of beauty, which is like, absolutely Photoshopped face, perfect hair. I never used my natural texture for years. I used always just to have blown out hair.¡±

6. Vidya Balan on dealing with body-image issues for years:

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Talking to TOI, Vidya said, ¡°It was important for me to have gone through what I did. It was very public, and at that time, it was so insurmountable. I come from a non-film family. There was no one to tell me that these phases don¡¯t last. My weight issue had become a national issue. I have always been a fat girl; I wouldn¡¯t say that I am at a stage where my fluctuating weight doesn¡¯t bother me anymore. But I have come a long way. I have had hormonal issues all my life. For the longest time, I hated my body. I thought it had betrayed me. On the days I was under the pressure of looking my best, I would bloat up, and I would be so angry and frustrated.¡±

7. Taapsee Pannu on star culture in Bollywood

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In an interview with RJ Siddharth Kanan, Taapsee was quoted as saying, "Producers have finalized me, locked my dates, and then randomly backed out at the last minute because they got a bigger name. Expecting equal pay is far off; even the basic amount is something I have to fight for¡ª but I¡¯m not complaining."

8. Radhika Madan on the nepotistic nature of the film industry:

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Talking to Hindustan Times, Madan said, "When I started out, it wasn't like a line of scripts were lying with me, and I could choose the best or zero in on the director or banner to debut with. Tab yeh tha ki jo ho raha hai aur achha lag raha hai, mujhe mil jaye bus. It's not as easy as an outsider. If I start talking about rejections, this conversation might go on. I did lose the project to a star kid, but my audition also didn't go well. But when you're told you're a good actor but not pretty enough at the age of 20, it shakes your confidence."

9. Deepika Padukone on pay disparity in Bollywood

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Deepika said, "I know my track record and what I'm worth. I know that my co-actors films haven't been doing well as my films have been doing. It made absolutely no sense. I was okay to say no to that film based on that one thing as I thought it was unfair."

10. Manoj Bajapyee on nepotism and Bollywood's hypocrisy of celebrating mediocrity:

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Talking to WION news, Bajpayee was quoted as saying, ¡°Let me start with this, and the world is not fair. I have been saying this for 20 years as an industry, and we celebrate mediocrity. Forget about the industry; as a nation, we celebrate mediocrity. Something is lacking somewhere -- in our thought process, our value system. We immediately want to ignore or push it away when we see talent. This is the value system of ours which is so deplorable."

11. Abhay Deol spoke his heart out on lobbying culture in Bollywood

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Abhay spoke to Hindustan Times and said, ¡°Lobby culture has been prevalent in our industry not for years, but decades. Hence, no one thinks about standing up or bothering to do anything. They are all ready to conform, which is why they know that they can get away with it. I can say this because I grew up in a film family, and I¡¯ve heard of these games even as a child. As a kid, I heard it through other people¡¯s experiences, and as a professional, I have seen it myself.¡±

12. Lin opened up about the lack of inclusivity while casting for mainstream projects.

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Lin spoke to Free Press Journal and said, "I admire Priyanka for her hard work, she really put in a lot of hours in order to look like Mary Kom but I always felt that casting is an important step in film. I believe in authenticity and inclusivity, so a girl from Manipur or the North East could have been surely cast to represent us."

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