Akshay Kumar’s Saugandh Co-Star Shanthipriya Claims His Racist Joke Slipped Her Into Depression: “It Was Very Uncomfortable…”

In 1991, Akshay Kumar starred in a film called Saugandh alongside Shanthipriya. It was her debut film but the actress was shocked to face sexism in the film industry. Recently, the actress shared a video on her Instagram page in which she has talked about the sexist and racist remarks and her depression.

In her video, Shanthipriya revealed that Akshay Kumar made fun of her skin colour. It hurt her the most and she slipped into depression after the remarks. That’s also the reason why she decided to quit the film industry. The Saugandh actress said, “After working in Saugandh, I worked with Akshay in Ikke Pe Ikka. It was a modern character and I had to wear a short dress. I used to wear stockings with dresses. I remember how Akshay used to make fun of me. We were shooting for the climax scene and because I wore a pair of stockings, my knees were looking darker.”

The Saugandh actress added, “Apart from Akshay, Pankaj Dheer, Chandani, Prithvi, Raj Sippy, spot boy, makeup man, and other people were also present on the set. There were around 100 people. In front of all of them, Akshay said ‘Shantipriya has got big blood clots on her legs’. He repeated the same many times but I couldn’t understand it. I asked him about the blood clots on my legs and he said ‘look at your knees’. I was taken aback when I heard him. I was shocked and embarrassed. I didn’t know how to react and kept thinking about others. It was very uncomfortable and I kept thinking how could Akshay make such a joke in front of so many people.”