By Swechya Raut for BBC Nepali/Translated
Once artist Nirmal Sharma was invited as a guest in a program. He arrived at the event, but walked out in protest of the way he was addressed. The host addressed him as “gaida” (rhino) while inviting him on the stage. “I got up and headed out of there,” Sharma said.
Sharma has cemented his identity in Nepali television industry through various works, including the much famed series ‘Tito Satya’, which also established his nickname as “gaida” among viewers.
He says that it would not be right to address him as an animal even after the TV series ended years ago. Sharma says, “I was 109 kg at the time. That’s why I was named “gaida” during the character building. But I didn’t think that the character would affect my identity beyond the screen.”
“It doesn’t hurt if my closed ones talk about my obesity. But these days I’ve come to realize that it’s wrong to make obesity a laughing stock,” says Sharma.
Sharma believes that the Nepali comedy field has also changed with the passage of time and now there is no way to make the audience laugh by making fun of someone’s physical condition or speaking style, slipping in the dung, or pulling someone’s pants down.
“With access to technology and viewers watching quality content from home and abroad, people are capable of deciding what is right and what is wrong. So, we can no longer try comedy at the expense of someone’s physical condition or character,” he says.
“Why are obese people being treated like animals in Nepali comedy TV series?” This is a hot debate in Nepali social media at the moment.
REASON FOR DEBATE
The 46th episode of the TV series ‘Sakkigoni’ begins with the scene of a family about to go see a potential bride based on an advertisement published in a newspaper.
Once arriving at the woman’s house, the man’s side of the family are shown disgusted by her fatness. The scene goes on to mimic the sound of an elephant when the woman is in the frame.
The man who had come looking for a bride says, “How can I marry such a scary fatty?”
Their marriage is eventually arranged due to greed for wealth and the subsequent story focuses on the woman’s obesity.
Scenes of the wedding include the use of a crane when the bridegroom is unable to lift the bride, the chariot carrying the bride (doli) is breaks, the front of the auto rickshaw is lifted when the bride sits on it, and the bed is breaks, among other things.
Dipika Jamkatel asks through her TikTok, “People are animals and should be tied up? A family member is tied up while they are sleeping just because they are fat? Which society’s story is being narrated in the name of comedy?”
Jamkatel says she finds the scenes in the series offensive. She says that such material conveys the message that ‘fat people should be laughed at’. According to her, it was necessary for her to speak out against the offensive scenes because of the abuse she had suffered due to her fat body.
“People may not be able to change the shape of their body as they wish, but they can certainly change their thoughts. How long are we going to fat-shame people?” says Jamkattel.
Other social media users have also joined the debate on the subject.
WHAT ENCOURAGES FAT-SHAMING IN COMEDY?
Bharti Singh from Punjab is a famous Indian comedian. In various interviews, she has talked about the painful struggle behind her comedy.
Coming from a feeble financial background, Singh has made a mockery of her poverty and obesity in many programs. She told BBC News Hindi that she joked about her poverty and obesity to earn money.
Bhawana Acharya, a 30-year-old actress from ‘Sakkigoni’, who claims to be in a similar situation to Bharati, weighs 120 kg. More than seven million people follow her on TikTok.
She said, “I’m interested in acting. But I thought I would never get a chance to be seen on screen because of my fat body. So I was fulfilling my wish through TikTok. Suddenly an offer came from a popular show. There was no reason to say no.”
She says that the opportunity to act with remuneration has become a source of income for her.
(For full text, https://www.bbc.com/nepali/news-59765631)
