Popular South Indian actor Kajal Aggarwal, who has also starred in Bollywood films like Singham, shared close-up pictures of herself with no make-up on, on Friday. The actor made no effort to hide real skin colour and freckles, saying that it took “supreme shedding of inhibitions” to be able to post these pictures on her Instagram account.
“And it took courage and supreme shedding of inhibitions (and an entire layer of makeup) to finally put this picture up,” said Kajal.
In another long post, the actress sent out a powerful message, saying that “true beauty lives in accepting ourselves for how lovely we are”.
People can’t discover themselves anymore. Perhaps because we live in a world crazed by physical attraction or because social media has swallowed up our self esteem in whom and what it glorifies. Billions of rupees are spent on cosmetics and beauty products that promise you the prefect body. Narcissism seems to exist everywhere. Between those lines, we try to join the crowd or feel left out. Yet the only way we can truly be happy is when we start accepting who we are rather than defining or carving a different image for ourselves. Although makeup beautifies our outer persona, does it build our character and define who we are? True beauty lies, in accepting ourselves for how lovely we are.Kajal Aggarwal
The photographs are a part of the shoot Kajal did for photographer Joseph Radhik, well known for doing the wedding photography for Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli and Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas.
The pictures received a great response on Instagram. Telugu actor Pragya Jaiswal replied, saying, “Wow”. Indo-Canadian singer Shashaa Tirupati said it was a “crucial message.”
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)