When Sonali Bendre was skinny shamed in the 90s: It was not the standard of beauty

Sonali Bendre rose to fame for her leading parts in films such as Sarfarosh, Zakhm, and Hum Saath Saath Hain. The 47-year-old actress once admitted to being skinny-shamed for her body. She talked about how being "voluptuous" was viewed as the ideal of beauty in the 1990s and being "skinny" was never a requirement. 

Sonali Bendre’s experience with body shaming 

In a conversation with Bollywood Bubble, Sonali discussed body shaming in the film industry during her early career. The actress said, “Being skinny was definitely not the standard of beauty back in the 90s, so voluptuousness was the standard of beauty. I was told you were just not a woman enough if you were not voluptuous, you know, which it shouldn’t be. I do agree body shaming should not have any part in our society and especially little girls and the kind of ideas they are growing up with and the crazy dieting people are doing. People are forgetting that it is not holistic.”

Sonali Bendre is not the first celebrity to denounce body shaming in the film industry. In a previous interview, Madhuri Dixit had also said that she had been asked to put on weight. “They thought I was too skinny, to begin with during my time. They used to say, ‘Yeh heroine, isko thoda mota karo’ (make this heroine gain weight).”

Sonali Bendre’s cancer recovery 

Sonali Bendre also opened up about her experience with cancer in the same interview, admitting that she was afraid of her scars and her bald head after the diagnosis. 

For those who don't know, the 48-year-old actress received treatment for stage 4 cancer in the United States after receiving the diagnosis in 2018. Sonali has been a vocal supporter of women getting tested for breast cancer since she overcame the illness.