'Kaala actor nahi chahaiye': Dibyendu Bhattacharya reveals he was replaced in ad due to dark skin

Dibyendu Bhattacharya has thrown light on the grim issue of racism in Bollywood that is still very prevalent, revealing that he was replaced in ad because of his dark skin.

Bollywood actor Dibyendu Bhattacharya has joined the list of actors who have opened up about racism in the industry.

In a recent interview with Bollywood Bubble, Dibyendu has called racism a deeply rooted problem that continues to affect casting decisions in the industry.

Revealing that he was replaced in an ad because of his dark skin, Dibyendu said, "This is an issue and it is very rooted. Just a few days ago, I got cast for an advertisement and for 4-5 days discussions went on and just three days later, the shoot was supposed to happen. So I asked them are we doing the shoot or not? They said, 'Nahi Dada, aapko replace kiya kyunki aap kaale ho aur kaala actor nahi chahiye.'" (No brother, they have replaced you because you are dark skinned and they don't want a dark skinned actor)

The Undekhi actor further added that he wasn't affected much by the choice of words because this is something one can't do much about. More so, because our education system lacks in multiple fronts.

"It's very unfortunate par aap kuch nahi kar sakte ho. Jab Aapki buniyaad hi, primary education mein aap social ethics, norms introduce nahi karoge toh aap yeh nahi kar sakte (But you can’t really do much about it. If you don’t introduce social ethics and norms during primary education, then this can’t be achieved)."

Further drawing comparisons with countries like Japan and Korea where children are taught discipline at school level, he said there's still a long way to go for us because, in India, such values are often only taught at home and reflects more about a child's upbringing rather than reinforcement through early education.

However, Dibyendu is not the only actor who have raised his voice against racism. Earlier last month, Nawazuddin Siddiqui addressed the grim issue and claimed that films are written about fair women.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Dibyendu was last seen in SonyLiv's Undekhi Season 4 which was released on May 1, where he plays DSP Barun Ghosh. The show also stars Harsh Chhaya, Surya Sharma, Ankur Rathee and Gautam Rode in pivotal roles and has been receiving mixed reviews from the audience.