Undoubtedly, Deepika Padukone is one such star in the Indian film industry who has millions of people looking up to her. She is talented, brazen and has ceaselessly shown the world what it is like to have a spine. And, another feather in her cap is her presence on the cover of Allure magazine. 

That said, amidst all the celebration and accolades, the caption she used for her post is raising eyebrows because it is outright offensive. 

From being made to feel like a person of colour for as long as I can remember to making it to the cover of one of the world’s most prominent beauty magazines, it has been an arduous and uphill journey of learning, unlearning, growth and evolution. 

Deepika has expressed that she has been treated as a ‘person of colour’ which is completely inappropriate given her Indian origin.  

Additionally, the term ‘people of colour’ is predominantly used in the west to refer to anyone who is not white. It covers all non-white groups and underlines systematic racism, hence the term is considered derogatory. 

Deepika Padukone, who has a global fan base, made an insulting remark by claiming that she was treated like a ‘person of colour’, a statement which (a) doesn’t make sense, and (b) insinuates that people of colour are somehow lesser beings.

It seems like a gaffe made out of ignorance, but it doesn’t detract from the fact that her publicist, someone else, or she herself could have rectified it. Twitter has some thoughts too. 

In a world where certain groups are already grappling to live in peace, being responsible with our language, especially when you’re Deepika Padukone, is the least we can do.