Fatafati actress Arijita Mukhopadhyay: I was vocal against bullying even before I knew the word ‘body shaming’

Television’s popular face Arijita Mukhopadhyay is known for his powerful performance in Aay Khuku Aay, Chuni Panna, Ay Tobe Sahachari, Jibon Sathi, etc. After working as important characters in several serials, Arijita is now busy shooting Nim Fuler Modhu. Besides, the actress is also ready for her upcoming film, Fatafati. Directed by Aritra Mukherjee, the film features Ritabhari Chakraborty and Abir Chatterjee in the lead. The film takes on bullying and body-shaming by society. Before rushing to her shooting for Nim Fuler Modhu, in which she plays mother-in-law, Arijita talked to OTTplay about how she has been dealing with body-shaming. 

Arijita is often seen in characters way older than her age. Talking about if her casting is the stereotype associated with body shaming, the actress said, “Maybe the first time I was cast in a role of mother/ mother-in-law, it was due to the fact that I am a broad-shouldered big-built person. Since that clicked, I started getting offers for similar roles. I used to take it as a challenge. On TV, most of my characters are very significant in the tracks. I am either a mother-in-law or a vicious villain. Perhaps, the initial casting went in my favour. TV serials follow a definite track with very little scope for experimentation. I noticed that I usually got offers of bold characters – good or villain.”

In Fatafati, Arijita’s character, Rinku, is Fullara’s (Ritabhari) friend. “Since most of the characters I play on TV are one-dimensional when it comes to web series and films, I try to be a little selective. For me, Hoichoi’s Sampurna was an important work. In Fatafati, my character has a very strong journey and layers,” she said. 

Arijita admitted that she faced taunts and bullies since her childhood. However, she is also known to be a vocal type. “In my school days, I was never obese. I have broad shoulders and am tall. Since I was on the bigger side in terms of body type. I was constantly called Mukti (fatso) by some of my classmates. Not just them, even my teacher asked my mother if I was admitted to a lower class than my age required. My mother showed her my birth certificate. I used to protest then. It was not just about body shaming. One of my male classmates was a little polite and effeminate. He used to be called ‘ladies’. I used to be vocal about that too. I was vocal against bullying even before I knew the word ‘body-shaming’. I went to elite schools and colleges and even there people used to hint at by-shaming all the time,” she said.