Bipasha Basu told not to Tan as she was already ‘Dusky’

Bipasha Basu has revealed how she was told to avoid getting a tan because she was already “dusky”.

The actress made the revelation as she celebrates her 20 year anniversary of being in Bollywood.

The actress said that among the unsolicited advice given to her, she was told to carry an umbrella with her at all times despite her love of sunbathing.

Bipasha told Hindustan Times: “I used to love sunbathing all the time, even though I’m dusky.

“But I was told, ‘You’ve to walk with an umbrella all the time’. I understand now why umbrellas are required.

“Back then, in my me-time, I was told that you shouldn’t tan because you’re already dusky.

“But none of these things really stopped me.

“These are some rules that I was told to follow right from my first film, which I never followed.”

She then mentioned that one of these instances was when she was shooting for her debut film, Ajnabee, in Switzerland in 2001 and was drinking an iced coffee.

Her hairstylist told her that people thought that she was drinking whisky and that she should drink it in a cup instead of a glass so people don’t confuse the two.

Another time included when the actress had been wearing a backless outfit and was told not to dress up like that as it was only for the screen and not for real life.

Bipasha continued: “I used to ask, if you can’t wear something in your normal life, how can you wear it on screen?

“In fact, I’ve had experiences where big actresses would comment on other girls wearing tiny shorts off-screen, and when they were the ones who’d wear it on screen.”

The film star added that she could “never understand this double standard”.

Now married to fellow actor Karan Singh Grover since 2016, Bipasha recalled a time when she said that her then-boyfriend would be joining her on set much to the shock of some others.

She said: “I was asked why you’re talking about your boyfriend. It’s a very personal thing.

“I was like I’m not ashamed of my boyfriend and don’t need to hide him.”

Ajnabee was moderately successful but her Bipasha’s leading role in the 2002 horror film Raaz is what earned her a Filmfare Award nomination for Best Actress and really launched her career.

She has since appeared in several more successful movies throughout her career including No Entry in 2005, and Phir Hera Pheri and Dhoom 2 in 2006.

Bipasha Basu has most recently starred in the second season of the web series, Dangerous, with her husband.