In the glamorous world of showbiz, unrealistic beauty standards often dominate, with many actors facing criticism for their appearance. Krystle Dsouza, a popular television actress, recently opened up about her personal experiences with body and color shaming. In a candid conversation with News18 Showsha, she revealed the pressure she faced early in her career regarding her skin tone and even shared a peculiar tip she received to “enhance” her appearance.
Recalling the experience, Krystle said, “People gave me a lot of unsolicited advice, and they still do. I’ve been called dusky, and I remember someone telling me to wash myself with milk to lighten my skin. I kept thinking, ‘But I’m allergic to milk, so what then?’ I didn’t want to be fair. I’m Indian, I’m desi, and I love my skin color. Why should I change it?”
Krystle also spoke about the pressure she faced to alter her eye color, leading her to wear contact lenses for a significant part of her career. “I have green eyes. From 2008-2009 until 2019, when I did Fittrat, I wore brown lenses every single day because I was told I wouldn’t look like a positive character with green eyes. I didn’t question it and wore dark brown lenses for nearly a decade,” she recalled.
However, during the filming of Fittrat, Krystle experienced a turning point. The show’s director encouraged her to embrace her natural eye color. “People who knew me personally knew my eyes were green, but audiences thought my eye color was naturally brown. During Fittrat, my director told me, ‘Throw those lenses out. I love your eyes.’ That gave me the confidence to reject the pressures to change my appearance. Now, if anyone tells me something like that, I won’t believe it or give in to it,” she said.
Krystle acknowledged that being in the spotlight comes with constant scrutiny, but she has developed a thicker skin over time. “As an actor, you’re under a lot of scrutiny for how you look and behave. But I don’t take it too seriously. It’s all part of the game. At the end of the day, where does it all lead? We all go up in the end,” she remarked, adding her grounded perspective.
Her confidence in embracing herself also extended to her recent role in the film Visfot, where she gained a few extra kilos for the character. “In Visfot, I play a sweet, girl-next-door type, so I didn’t need to look my fittest. I wanted to be as real as possible, and I was okay with my arms flabbing. I even thought it was cute! I was enjoying my cupcakes and didn’t let it bother me,” she shared with a laugh.
Krystle Dsouza’s journey serves as a reminder that self-love and confidence in one’s natural beauty are far more powerful than the pressures of conforming to societal expectations. Her story continues to inspire fans to embrace their authenticity, regardless of the standards imposed by others.
