Known for his outspoken persona and liberal stands on various issues, Bollywood actor Abhay Deol, on Wednesday, went on a social media tirade against fairness products that ripped apart even the Badshah Shah Rukh Khan and A-list actress Deepika Padukone.
And the weapon of choice was admirably, sarcasm!
The series of writings kicked off with the a ‘WE ARE NOT A RACIST COUNTRY!’ post with John Abraham’s poster for Garnier’s men’s fairness products. And within the span of a few minutes, it evolved into a rant targetting many leading names from B-Town.
The Dev-D actor soon took a swipe on SRK and his yesteryear promo for Emami Fair And Handsome, which was both racist as well as sexist. And one of King Khan’s leading ladies, Deepika Padukone wasn’t spared either.
Apart from calling out Bollywood celebs like Sidharth Malhotra, Vidya Balan, Shahid Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor and Ileana D’Cruz, the outburst also bitchslapped international brands for propagating racist ideas in our part of the world.
A politician’s latest remark on India’s ‘inclusivity’ for people from the south was also brought into discussion through a sarcastic take on Nandita Das’ empowering comments.
Towards the fag end of this hour-long marathon, the Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara actor finally spoke his heart out by opining that ‘there’s a lot more of these campaigns that are blatantly, and sometimes subtly, selling you the idea that whiter skin is better than darker skin.’ (sic)
He also said that ‘no one at the top of their game’ will tell you that this is racist, but you have to stop buying into the idea at an individual level. And while it might be difficult to change the attitudes of the entire country, one ‘can at least start with the family.’
At the end, he restored our faith in the industry by naming the few good men and women who have rejected offers to promote fairness brands in the industry. Among these are the likes of Kangana Ranaut and Ranbir Kapoor, which is a testimony to how sense can still prevail over mad lust for money.
And to Abhay Deol, keep up the good work, mate, both on the screen and off it!
