Exclusive: Dia Mirza on facing rejections: Was told I'm too pretty, too short to be a ramp mode

Dia Mirza, who was last seen in Taapsee Pannu starrer Thappad, spoke about the rejections she faced during her initial days for being too pretty.

By Pinkvilla Desk

Updated on Mar 07, 2020 | 03:20 PM IST | 688.5K

Exclusive: Dia Mirza on facing rejections: Was told I'm too pretty, too short to be a ramp mode

Dia Mirza is one of the most talented actresses in the industry. From winning a beauty pageant to modelling and then carving a niche for herself in Bollywood, the diva has come a long way in her career. While she is one of the popular faces in the industry and her poise and panache often leave us gasping for breath. But this success and recognition didn’t come easy for Dia Mirza and she too faced her share of rejection during her initial days.

But what surprises us that this beauty queen was once rejected for being too pretty to be a ramp model. Yes! You read that right. This happened during her initial days of modelling in 1990s wherein she was told that she was too short and too pretty to be a model. “I was told ‘You should just do commercials and Bollywood’ and Bollywood would be said to me like it’s a bad thing. It’s really the tone that people use to convey things sometimes that can either become a compliment or an insult. It’s not always what you are saying, it’s about how you say it. Also, many times I was told, ‘uff yaar! You are too pretty’ and I was like is it a bad thing?” Dia stated.

ALSO READ: EXCLUSIVE: Dia Mirza on her parents and their influence on her life choices

Furthermore, the Rehna Hai Terre Dil Mein actress also about the beauty standards in society and revealed that even light-skinned people face the same. Talking about the same, Dia stated, “Beauty judgements are many and while we think that light skin women have no judgements to deal with. There is this filmmaker I love and respect and I really wanted to work with, once told me ‘You are too fair to be in my movies’. And then I have also heard ‘You are too pretty to play this part’. It’s all social conditioning and it goes straight back to the fact that we keep identifying people and putting them into a box when everyone is capable of doing much more than we ever allow them to be”.