"Your skin is something you can’t change just remember it’s always about how you carry yourself."
Lahore (Pakistan Point News – 19th December, 2018) Yumnah Shahid, the wife of Pakistani-Canadian comedian and YouTube star Zaid Ali Tahir, has written a beautiful note on how she was judged for her skin colour.
Taking to Instagram, Yumnah shared a collage of her childhood and recent picture and pointed out to one of the bitter realities of our society.
“When I was 5, my family immigrated to Canada. This is a picture of me at the age of 10,” she began.
“Growing up, I was never made to feel “fat” or “dark” because my family and the people around me never made me feel that way. The culture in Canada is such that you are not judged based on your appearance, skin colour, or cast but how you act,” she recalled.
“In 1999, when I went back to Pakistan, I was hit with rude remarks and cunning looks because of the way I looked. I was called ugly, fat left and right. Some people thought I would never get married. Everyone felt the need to give me unsolicited advice wherever I went,” Yumnah continued.
She said that she was genuinely confused.
“I would think, why do these people care about my looks? I look great 👍🏼 and if I actually am fat, how come no one ever told me before? So I decided to ask my mom ... and she said Yumnah, don’t focus on what other people are saying. Your skin is something you can’t change just remember it’s always about how you carry yourself. And always carry yourself with confidence!” she added.
In such simple words, Yumnah has given a very strong message. Pakistanis need to move beyond these complexes do not necessarily need to judge everyone on their looks.
