Mumbai: Responding to her Facebook post, taking affront at being 'roasted' for her dark skin on the comedy show 'Comedy Nights Bachao,' the Colors channel today apologised to her and assured her that the episode aired would be free of offensive content. A spokesperson for Colors TV, responding to Ms Chatterjee's post on Facebook, said that they would ensure the episode aired would be free of offensive content.
The management had 'taken this up seriously' with the makers of Comedy Nights Bachao, he added. Colors also emphasized that they were committed to "creating content that is meaningful and addresses pertinent social issues - skin colour bias being one of them".
Earlier, Tannishtha in a Facebook post, had taken offence at the TV comedy show for subjecting her to jokes about her skin tone, as part of a roast.Tannishtha made an appearance on the show 'Comedy Nights Bachao,' as part of the promotions of her latest release, along with director Leena Yadav and co-star Radhika Apte.
In her Facebook post, Tannishtha said her dark skin tone was made fun of, on the TV show.
The actress did admit to being informed in advance about the show's format and expected it to be on the lines of US TV shows like Saturday Night Live and was actually looking forward to it.
However, she wasn't prepared to get trolled for her skin colour.
The actress said that she was described as 'kaali kalooti' and asked if she was eating jamun since childhood, as a result of which 'mooh kala hai', by the contestants of the show. As a result, Tannishtha stormed out of the show mid-way.Talking about her experience on the show, Tannishtha said, ''I was told that the flavor of the show is comedy and the purpose is to roast, humour and offend.
My perception of the roast was formed by all the SNLs I watched over the years, and the commonly held perception that a roast is a celebratory humour at someone's expense.It is a mock counter to a toast.I was actually looking forward to be roasted.''And then this show began.And this was an entirely novel understanding of roast that equates itself with bullying.
And to my utmost horror, I soon realized that the only quality they found worth roasting about in me was my skin tone.It began with ''aap ko jamun bahut pasand hoga zaroor… kitna jamun khaya aapne bachpan se?'' ''And went on in that direction… the only thing they could roast about a dark-skinned actress was of course her dark skin.
They could identify me only with that. I could not believe I was sitting in a nationally televised comedy show in 2016 in Mumbai amid such regressive (I can't call it humour), and blatantly racist content.Though I was feeling suffocated, I decided to give it another chance, and sat through another equally offensive segment.
Nothing changed.I could not sit there anymore.I had to leave.'' On the argument by the channel that the show was about 'fun and games', Tannishtha said, ''Some friends told me don't take it so seriously, it's just a comedy. I think that's what the show also thinks.
It's all fun and games! ''Except there is nothing funny about this.Precisely because in a country where we still sell fair n lovely/handsome and show adverts, where people don't get jobs because of their complexion, where every matrimonial advert demands a fair bride or groom and the colour bias is so strong, in a society which has a deep-seated problem with dark skin, which also has deep roots in our caste system, in a country where dark skin is marginalized, making fun of it is not roast.
''Even considering that dark skin is a joke comes from that very deep prejudice.And I tried to explain why this is not personal and it is a larger issue about what our mindset is.And why cracking jokes about deep biases in our society is irresponsible.''And that it is not a question about apologizing to me, but propagating this idea and continuing with this mindset in the name of comedy is what is hugely problematic, especially because it is a popular show on a nationalised Chanel.
'' Arguing that her protest has nothing to do with the show at a personal level, she said, ''it leads to a larger debate.Why does the skin tones still lend itself to jokes? How is it funny to call someone dark? I don't get it.
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In an India of 2016, I still have to be apologetic about my skin tone? ''What is this white-skin hangover? Where does all our pride as a nation go away when it comes to the acceptance that most of us have a darker skin tone?'' Claiming that hatred for dark skin stemmed from a caste bias, she said, ''Once I was asked 'Your surname is Chatterjee? Oh, you are Brahmin.
What is your mother's surname? Maitra! Oh….She is Brahmin too… And then indirectly, he hinted how is my skin tone still dark…? ''This is so deep rooted and linked to our perceptions of caste, class and skin tone.
Upper caste =Fair skin =touchable.
Lower caste=dark skin=untouchable.
Yes, I have pronounced it.
Probably most of us will not admit that our hatred for dark skin also comes from our caste bias.
''I made a film called Parched. We wanted to express a lot of things about gender, body, skin, sexuality, caste etc through our stories.
It has been a revelation that the journey has just begins here as we realise through our promotional process that we are constantly subjected to exactly those issues, from which this film was engendered.The list is long long and the biases are deep deep….The privilege that allows, these are what we had hoped to challenge,'' she added. (UNI)
