Mrunal Thakur Shamed For "Matka" Body: Will Society Ever Approve Of Women's Bodies?

Actor Mrunal Thakur has recently made several media appearances for the promotion of her newly released film Jersey. During one of the media interactions, the actor shared that she was shamed for her body type in India when she was getting compliments for the same in the US. Thakur was told that her body is shaped like a matka, an Indian clay utensil with a broader bottom. In universally observed terms, Thakur's body type would be called pear-shaped. The difference between a matka and a pear is only one-- one is used for an insult and another is just a shape.

Thakur revealed that many Indian online trolls called her matka and in her professional circle she was always told to "cut down from her lower body." The actor believes that one should own their body type and not feel bad about the way people see it. She said, "I have a pear-shaped body. My briefing was always like, 'Mrunal, you need to cut down from your lower body.' But excuse me, that's my body type. If I cut down – I start losing weight from my face, then my upper body and then it would reach my lower body - I will still have that shape." She added, “So rather than people calling me matka and me feeling bad, I take a lot of pride in it."

Mrunal Thakur Body-Shamed

Mrunal Thakur also said that during her visit to the US, she got compliments for her curves and was even called 'Indian Kardashian'. Thakur was told that in the US, many women pay for surgery to have a body type like her. The compliment gave Thakur the confidence to post her pictures on social media. Thakur is not alone in feeling this way, receiving compliments for something we have long been shamed for can lift a lot of pressure from our shoulders. One feels more accepted and less alone.

Most of us have a complicated relationship with our own bodies. Society tends to put people in a box the moment they are born, they are judged, complimented, ridiculed and even celebrated for the box they live in. If they do manage to get out of the box, then starts another difficult journey of self-acceptance and self-love. While Thakur seems to not fit the box designed for female actors in India, she gets compliments for the same in the US.

Suggested Reading: Why Do Flat Chested Women Bother Society So Much?

American celebrities such as Kim Kardashian and her sisters have set new beauty standards, or a new box, that many find desirable. If they have made many women feel more accepted, the celebration of their body type has also pressured others to make changes in their physique to fit that box. That is the complicated nature of beauty standards in our society. There is always something it wants to change about us- too fat, not skinny, too flat chest, too big, too small, too tall, too short, too dark, too white.

The weighing scale and the measuring tape decide what a woman is supposed to feel about herself. And it's a fact that most women find it hard to like the way they look. So, do we need trolls to make that act harder? Why can't people be and acquire as much space as they want with their bodies?

Views expressed by the author are their own.