Ritabhari Chakraborty chose 'Fatafati', gained weight to spread message of body positivity

Mumbai, Aug 4 (IANS) Bengali actress Ritabhari Chakraborty, who has been getting a lot of positive response to her work in the Bengali film ‘Fatafati’, has shared that she chose the film out of all projects that she had at the time of signing because she wanted to send out a social message surrounding body positivity. The actress also gained weight for her role.

The actress said that she had two surgeries in 2020, after which she gained six kgs, though it's not a big number but for an actress, it's quite a lot because there are certain expectations from actresses of her age.

She said, “Aritra Mukherjee (the director of the film) and I have done ‘Brahma Janen Gopon Kommoti’ together and when ‘Fatafati’ came to his mind, he wanted me to be part of it, however, the challenge was that I had to go from medium to XL for it which means gaining 15-20 kilos more." 

The actress shared that this character came to her when she had a couple of other projects underway. For one project, she had to lose all the extra kilos whereas for ‘Fatafati’, she had to go bulky.

She further mentioned, “I have realised that if we are either skinny or bulky, the audience will comment on our bodies in either of these cases. As an actor, I chose ‘Fatafati’ because I wanted to spread a message about body positivity. For this role, I came back after two surgeries, hence my trainer made sure to add sweet potatoes and stuff like Ghee which would bulk me up but not harm my body”

‘Fatafati’ also stars Abir Chatterjee and has been directed by Aritra Mukherjee.

Talking about the film, Ritabhari said, “‘Fatafati’ weaves together a powerful narrative that holds a mirror up to the viewers. Unrealistic societal standards of beauty are detrimental to the self-esteem of women. No two bodies are the same, but all deserve respect and acceptance”.

“I have had my own struggles with body image over the years, so playing the character of Phullora was both a personal and liberating experience for me. It not only made me feel more comfortable in my skin but also helped me embrace my individuality. The film celebrates all the differences that make each of us uniquely Fatafati”, she added.

The film has been produced by Nandita Roy and Shiboprosad Mukherjee under the banner of Windows Productions.

After getting good response at the box-office, the film dropped on Sony LIV on Friday.