‘Flesh’ actor Moinak Dutta speaks up about how he was turned down at auditions because he was overweight. He also opens up about how he had stopped giving auditions just because he was being rejected because of the way he looked and not because of his talent.
Body-shaming is not acceptable, but things are different when you are a celebrity. Entertainment industry has its own parameters for beauty and body standards. Actors often face trolling and criticism, but body shaming for gaining weight or looking thin is something which is very hurtful. Actor Moinak Dutta is also no stranger to body shaming.
Speaking about body shaming, Moinak Dutta reveals that he was fat-shamed quite often. Sharing his experience, he says, "I remember those days like it was yesterday. When I started working in the Bengali industry, I was already overweight, due to my erratic, sporadic lifestyle. In fact, one of the reasons for me getting the part in ‘Bou Kotha Kao’ was me being overweight. After the show ended, I was often turned down by saying that 'you are overweight'. I was on the heavier side that time and was subjected to severe body-shaming, which affected me a great deal back then."
Further revealing the hurtful things that he got to hear, Moinak Dutta says, "I faced remarks like “How will we cast you? We would need two cameras to get you in one frame”, “Have you seen how ugly you look?” and “You know fat people can’t act as their expressions are not visible through facial fat.” I reached a point in my life when I lost my confidence and stopped giving auditions. It was hard overcoming that, but I have learnt to accept myself the way I am and don’t let any amount of body-shaming affect me now.”
For the unversed, Moinak Dutta is an Indian actor, writer, musician and singer, who produces music under the pseudonym of Shaivya. He is popularly known for his Bengali television series ‘Bou Kotha Kao’, ‘Ranga Mathaye Chiruni’, ‘Sokhi’, ‘Boyei Gelo’ and the Bengali feature film ‘Tenida’. He has also done a web show, ‘Flesh’.