‘Dark-skinned actors don’t survive in Bollywood’

Veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty reflected on his career journey and recalled being told that ‘dark-skinned actors’ don’t survive in Bollywood, as he picked the Dadasaheb Phalke trophy at the National Film Awards, for his contribution to cinema.

On Tuesday, at the 70th National Film Awards ceremony in Delhi, India, Mithun Chakraborty received the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award from President Droupadi Murmu, to acknowledge his contribution the the Indian cinema.

In his acceptance speech, Chakraborty reflected on the early years of his career, when he was discouraged from entering the film industry. “Many told me that dark-skinned actors wouldn’t survive in Bollywood. I prayed to God, ‘Could you change my colour?’” he recalled.

The veteran continued, “But eventually accepted that I couldn’t alter my complexion. Instead, I focused on my dancing skills, determined to become so remarkable that audiences would overlook my skin colour.”

“That’s how I transformed into the ‘sexy, dusky Bengali babu’,” he added.

The seasoned star also shared that he was not presented with anything ‘on the platter’ and earned ‘everything with his hard work’. “I often questioned God for my struggles, but after receiving this award, I feel at peace and will never complain again,” he concluded.

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Notably, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India’s highest accolade in the field of cinema, which is presented annually at the National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals. Other recipients of the honour in recent years include Waheeda Rehman, Asha Parekh, Amitabh Bachchan, Rajinikanth and Vinod Khanna.