Image was shared on Instagram. (Courtesy: shanthipriya333)
Actress Shanthi Priya recently opened up about her experience working with her first co-star, Akshay Kumar, and a sensitive incident that occurred on the set of the 1994 film “Ikke Pe Ikka.” Shanthi Priya made her Bollywood debut with the 1991 film “Saugandh,” in which she starred alongside Akshay Kumar. In a recent interview with Siddharth Kannan, Shanthi Priya revealed that Akshay Kumar had made a comment about her complexion, which deeply affected her.
During the interview, Shanthi Priya shared that Akshay Kumar had commented on the darkness of her knees while on the set of “Ikke Pe Ikka.” She recounted the incident, saying that Akshay asked her in front of others if she had hurt herself and why her knees were so dark and black. This comment left her hurt and led her to go into a depression. She mentioned that she was around 22-23 years old at the time and that her mother provided support as they had faced such situations due to their skin color in the industry before.
Shanthi Priya further explained that despite the incident, she was not able to confront Akshay Kumar comfortably about it. She revealed that Akshay Kumar never formally apologized for his comment, but he told her that he was joking and not to take it seriously. While he acknowledged it was a joke, he did not express deep regret for his words.
The incident had occurred during the shooting of the film “Ikke Pe Ikka,” which also starred Anupam Kher and Moushumi Chatterjee. Shanthi Priya mentioned that the incident happened during the climax scene shoot and that the film had wrapped by then.
Shanthi Priya concluded by stating that Akshay Kumar’s response was more along the lines of saying he was joking rather than offering a heartfelt apology. Shanthi Priya was last seen in the web series “Dharavi Bank,” opposite Suneil Shetty.