Who is anyone to decide if I'm ugly? Nawazuddin speaks on Bollywood's racial bias
Speaking on the debate that raged over his tweet on Bollywood's obsession with fair skin, actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui said that everyone is good looking in their own way.
A day after Nawazuddin Siddiqui posted a cryptic tweet suggesting he has faced racial bias in Bollywood, the actor declared his trending comment did not target anyone specific.
"Racism exists everywhere, why just the film industry? In our country even a mother, who goes bride-hunting for her son, looks for a fair girl," said Nawaz.
For those who came in late, the exact tweet posted by @Nawazuddin_S on Monday was: "Thank U 4 making me realise dat I cannot b paired along wid d fair & handsome bcz I m dark & not good looking, but I never focus on that (sic)."
On Tuesday, in the Capital, while promoting his upcoming Munna Michael, Nawaz talked about how he had turned his look to an advantage. "If my average look is my USP today, it is because I have linked it to my work. But we waste too much time over these things. Who is anyone to decide if I am ugly or handsome? Everyone is good looking in their own way," he said.
'I DON'T CONSIDER MYSELF A STAR'
Nawaz underplays the fact that his image as an aam aadmi hero makes him a star of the multiplex circuit. "I don't consider myself as a star of any kind of cinema. That way, I would miss out on honing my instincts." Ironically, his focus on perfection bars him from bothering about awards. "I don't work for awards. If I do my intention as an actor becomes corrupted," he reasons. Munna Michael sees Nawaz match hip-hop steps with dancing sensation Tiger Shroff. "I needed a few rehearsals," he grins. "I was scared initially but I managed to get into the groove." Nawaz is excited about going mainstream with Munna Michael.
ABOUT MUNNA MICHAEL
"This is my first romantic role. I am the antihero who sets up a love triangle because he loves the heroine," he says. Does his approach differ for heavy-duty art films and for commercial outings, which he calls "fun roles"? "The common task is acting. I may mould myself according to a film's genre but in the end each role is complex in its own way," he says. Nearly two decades since that one-scene role in Sarfarosh, priorities have of course changed. "I know I will never face the struggle of my early years again. My challenge now is to keep reinventing myself as an actor. That will keep happening as I keep understanding the craft better," he concludes.
Also read: Nawazuddin Siddiqui is suing a magazine website for defamation
Also read: Nawazuddin Siddiqui is the finest actor we have. Why the racism, Bollywood?