Somy Ali on body shaming: Social media trolls are like ailments, will never go away

Actress Somy Ali has never been one to be cowed down by what people say and urges others also to follow the same. Miss Universe Harnaaz Sandhu was heavily trolled for putting on weight, during her ramp walk at the recently held Lakme Fashion Week. She has come out to defend herself and has revealed that she has celiac disease. Somy, who is currently running a successful NGO No More Tears in the US, says that she admires Harnaaz’s resilience.

“Harnaaz is a beautiful young lady and there is no doubt in my mind that she has worked terribly hard to prepare for the pageant and kudos to her for winning it as she rightfully deserves it. I respect her attitude towards the trolls and how she is handling them. Social media trolls are like ailments and they will never go away. These are literally cowardly individuals who themselves have several insecurities and deem themselves to be armchair warriors where they assume the right to judge people,” she says.

Somy Ali | Location: Florida Market, Palm Beach, Florida

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The actress adds that how the world perceives you should never be your criteria to judge yourself, but in showbiz, things are different. “I always thought that if I had a daughter and she would ask me if I thought she was pretty, I would respond with, ‘How does that matter or make any difference at all’,” she says, adding, “However, in Harnaaz’s case it’s a different scenario as the pageantry industry is solely based on how beautiful one looks in their entirety. While I don’t watch these pageants as my interests are quite antithetical to them, I have nothing against them. I know they will always be around given the first one took place in 1880’s.”

Somy Ali | Location: Florida Market, Palm Beach, Florida

However, it’s important to realise that you don’t owe your achievements to anyone’s approval, says Somy. “Whether it’s called body shaming or fat-shaming, one thing is clear: nobody should be judged or feel ashamed by the way they look. You only have one body, and you should love yourself. Other people will always have something to say, and you can’t definitely please everyone. You can’t live by what society expects of you, live by your own terms, and love yourself. You should learn how to feel good about yourself because you are worthy. I commend Harnaaz for standing up for herself and ignoring those inane comments. She is beautiful and has proven this to the world by winning the Ms Universe title. There is literally nothing more to it except jealousy and insecurities others live with which oozes out as hatred,” she says. Somy Ali will soon be seen in the docu-series Flight or Fight on Discovery Plus.