Last month, comedian and YouTube star Lilly Singh, who became famous with the moniker iiSuperwomanii, decided to completely ditch her nickname. In an emotional Instagram post, she announced to the world that she was “laying the cape to rest”. Lilly wrote, “Lilly has become an even bigger hero than Superwoman on this journey through my life. Lilly encompasses everything it took to get to where I am… and it’s a place I’m proud to be.”
And proud she should be, as she also came out as bisexual earlier this year with a short and simple tweet.
✅ Female
✅ Coloured
✅ BisexualThroughout my life these have proven to be obstacles from time to time. But now I’m fully embracing them as my superpowers.
No matter how many “boxes” you check, I encourage you to do the same x
❤️🧡💛💚💙
— Lilly Singh (@Lilly) February 25, 2019
At the time, she didn’t say much more than this, but it was an impactful statement to make nevertheless, one that made her LGBT and POC fans especially happy.
Now, in a longer and more forthcoming Instagram post, the Indian-Canadian actor has spoken about how her life has changed since she first came out to her friends and family last year.
Coming out is never easy, and it is particularly difficult in a culture like ours, where an individual’s choices are seen as representative of their family’s. Lilly alluded to this conundrum in her post, writing, “Coming out lifted a weight off my shoulders but at the same time, it placed the weight of judgment on my chest. Maybe that’s the culture I was raised in or maybe it’s all in my head but either way for me it’s real.”
Support for the LGBT community has been growing over the last few years, but we’re still a long way from offering them absolute acceptance and respect. Lilly hasn’t been immune to this unfortunate reality either. “I’m so happy that my coming out has inspired so many people but at the same time, I am not oblivious to the fact that some find my truth disappointing or not ideal. Whether I agree with them or not, I can’t deny that those energy waves have made me feel insecure more than once in the past year. For so many years I lived with the privilege of relating to every love song & rom com and now that my place on the spectrum has shifted, I realize how sad it is that not everyone can. Why am I sharing all of this? Because over the past year I learned the power of being kind to other people even if they’re different,” she wrote.
This has been a milestone year for Lilly on the work front as well. In March, she became the first woman to get her own late night talk show on a broadcast network in the US in 30 years, and she’s the first Indian woman to ever get this gig! Her show, A Little Late with Lilly Singh, begins airing later this month.
We’re glad that Lilly feels secure and happy enough in her life to be able to pen this note, and hope that it offers a moment of support to those who might be struggling with similar issues in their lives.
Featured Image Source: Instagram
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