Actor Ileana D’Cruz has always been a champion of body positivity. In several interviews, she has spoken about being body-shamed and has even said that she suffered from body dysmorphia (a mental health condition wherein a person finds flaws in their body). In a recent interview to a news portal, Bollywood Bubble, D’Cruz opened up about being body-shamed after hitting puberty.
Source: Instagram/ileana_official
D’Cruz said, “I remember those days like it was yesterday. It’s weird because it’s a very deeply ingrained scar. I went through body-shaming right from the time I was 12. I had just hit puberty and growing up. You are hit with these weird comments. And people are passing comments about your body and saying, ‘Oh My God, why is your butt so big?’ And I am like, ‘What do you mean?’ You think you are fine and then suddenly you have random people saying things about you and you start to believe what they are saying. So I think it’s a deeply ingrained scar because you are carrying it for so many years. It takes a lot of inner strength to tell yourself that what they are saying doesn’t matter. What you feel about yourself is most important. And it’s something I tell myself every single day.”
Source: Instagram/ileana_official
She also stressed on the importance of accepting one’s body and not paying heed to trolls. “Because I go through it every day. I have at least 10 messages that I can find on my Instagram right now about body shaming for sure. So there’s always going to be somebody saying something about you and it’s harsh. And as much as I would like to tell people can you please be more kind and more sensitive because you don’t understand how much it can affect somebody else. The only thing that’s in your control is you and how you think about yourself. So I would constantly just tell people your opinion about yourself is what matters the most. The hell with the world, the hell with what they think. Only your opinion matters. You are someone who is going to live with your body. There are days when I am like, ‘I don’t like this. Is my stomach too bloated?’ But now I am like, ‘No it’s fine, there’s a uterus in there so it’s fine. It’s alright. It’s not gonna be flat,” D’Cruz said.
Source: Instagram/ileana_official
D’Cruz is one of the few Bollywood celebrities who has been vocal about her body image issues and has always urged everyone to love their bodies irrespective of what the world says about them.
Social and lead image credit: Instagram/ileana_official
