Actress Richa Chadha has always been vocal about the dark side of Bollywood that promotes unrealistic beauty standards and its pressure on celebs. She recently shared a video on Instagram about self-love and self-acceptance. While talking about it to a leading daily, she said, “Men have the pressure to have six-pack abs, they have to look good all the time, they also have to take care of their hair and muscles. For women, the pressure takes a different form. This pressure is uniform. Everyone is constantly monitoring, measuring. So I wanted to talk about that.”
Richa lost 15 kgs in a span of three months recently and we wondered if it was because of the same pressure that she faced in the entertainment industry. But well, the actress is not someone to succumb to such irrational expectations of society. In her latest interview, she revealed that it was her own choice to transform her body because she wanted to become the fittest version of herself.
Richa said that while she was happy with the size she was at, she wanted to become fitter. “I was quite happy with the size I was at. I wanted to become healthier, overall. I wanted the quality of my sleep, movement, exercise and mobility to improve.” To do that, she did not rely on rigorous workouts as it had a negative effect on her body. “Too much exercise can damage your insides and be counter-productive to your effort. Rest is very important but underrated. To deal with the things that aren’t in our control, we’ve to follow a few basic rules for our health so that we can be prepared for those times when you’ve to push it in high-stress work environments.”
That’s so refreshing! To transform yourself physically and become healthier, you have to focus on your mental well-being as well. It’s a wholesome process and we’re glad that Richa has led bu example.
While Richa still stands by her words that one should not give in to the conventional beauty standards of society, she shares that it’s equally important to stay healthy and fit. “If I continue to remain 15-20 kgs heavier in order to justify what I had once said, then that’s wrong. If you feel you need to get healthier and live better but someone misconstrues it as I’m finally giving in to societal pressure, it’s not done!”
Losing or gaining weight is always a personal choice that one should never make based on societal pressure. We’re glad that Richa is reminding us of that and inspiring us to not just focus on our physical form but on our mental wellbeing as well.
Featured Image: Instagram
