You have to have fair skin to bag lead role: 'Habs' actor Janice Tessa on colourism in the industry

Ushna Shah and Feroze Khan's drama serial, Habs, has been making headlines ever since it started airing. The onscreen couple's obvious chemistry has propelled the reel-life pair to being a fan favourite. Shah and Khan's latest offering marks a big project for Janice Tessa, who plays Zoya in the show. 

Tessa, however, is now being praised on social media, not for her acting prowess, but for taking a stance against colourism, which has been prevalent in the Pakistani entertainment industry. 

In a recent interview with Fuschia, Tessa shared she was always bullied for her dusky complexion ever since she was in school.

Responding to whether her skin colour was a reason for facing some issues in the industry, the newbie shared, "Some issues? Way too many!" She went on to add. "I'm being bullied since my school. There were some people, I wouldn't name them, but if you want to bag a lead role [in a project], you have to have fair skin. It wasn't just one person who said this to me, there were so many people who had the same reason."

Tessa went on to share that when she reads the comments on Habs YouTube episode, it breaks her heart a little. "People are crazy, man," she remarked. "I'm not acting well, I don't have better dialogue delivery. You have every right to criticise, I will try and improve myself. But if you are saying, 'Oh, remove this 'kaali' from the scene, I don't like this 'kaali', why have you cast this 'kaali'?' People have labelled me as 'kaali'."

She added, "It's just a character. Some might like it, some might not. The difference of opinion is completely fine. But you are being personal right there." 

Adding how she is generally a strong person, Tessa said, "I'm generally not bothered. But we're all human. We're bound to have a breaking point. However, I still never let myself be demotivated. Because I have also received an ample amount of love from the same audience. I would rather look at the support, rather than the hate."