Hina Khan says she lost out on Kashmiri girl’s role, despite being Kashmiri, due to her ‘dusky’ skin: ‘Felt really bad’

Hina Khan, who is from Kashmir, revealed that she was once passed on for the role of a Kashmiri girl due to her ‘dusky’ complexion. She said that she could have done complete justice to the character because she speaks the language fluently.

While Hina did not name the project, she said that the team thought she ‘didn’t look Kashmiri enough’ and decided to cast someone else instead. She added that she ‘felt really bad’ about it.

In an interview with a leading daily, Hina said, “There are times where I probably don’t like the story or I don’t want to do that kind of a character for the time being, but there are also are times where you probably test for it, and you are very keen that it works, but it doesn’t work out for various reasons.”

She added, “I can’t talk about the project, but I remember I could not crack a project because I didn’t look Kashmiri enough. I am Kashmiri and I can fluently speak the language but I didn’t get cast because my complexion is dusky and I am not extremely fair. That’s what the team and character demanded. I really felt bad. When you know the language so well, probably you could have worked wonders in that character, but I didn’t get cast only because I don’t look Kashmiri (laughs). I never lose hope, I don’t give up. I keep trying!”

Also see: Hina Khan says she doesn’t care about vibing with co-star, agrees she can seem snobbish

Hina shot to fame with her debut show, Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, in 2009. She played the lead role of Akshara Singhania. She has also participated in reality shows such as Khatron Ke Khiladi 8 and Bigg Boss 11, finishing as the first runner-up in both. Her filmography includes Hacked and Wishlist.