‘I'm going to get to size zero': Rubina Dilaik opens up about a year of extreme dieting
Rubina Dilaik
recently opened up on her podcast about a challenging period early in her career, where the intense pressure to meet certain beauty standards deeply affected her. Recalling the emotional toll, Rubina described how harsh comments about her appearance on set pushed her into drastic decisions.
'Toh yeh set par aapka pehla show hai aur chilla kar aapko, aapke look ke liye literally pratadat kiya jaata hai. It stains your memory,' she shared. Determined to meet the industry's expectations, she resorted to an extreme diet: 'To an extent that I went on boiled spinach soup and Nutris for one complete year. And I pledged to myself—I'm going to get to size zero.'
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Although she eventually reached her desired size, Rubina admitted that the physical and emotional cost was far greater than she had anticipated. 'But I looked so sick and pale. My energies were so down. That phase, when I look back, I think—what was I even thinking?' she reflected, adding that she wished someone had guided her to accept herself as she was.
She recalled how her entry into the industry was marked by innocence and health. 'I was 19 or 20 when I entered the industry. I came from the mountains—ghee, doodh, dahi kha kar. I was a fresh-faced, round-cheeked kid. And when I see my first show now, I see that natural glow.'
However, the physical transformation she undertook for her second show left her feeling empty despite the external changes. 'Those cheekbones, that snatched waist… it didn't have the glow. And slowly, I started believing that maybe this is beauty,' she admitted.
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Rubina also revealed how this distorted perception of beauty began to shape her self-image. 'That psychology started attracting people and situations that validated my inner fears. I allowed that mindset to shape how I saw myself.'
Her honest account stands as a poignant reminder of the quiet harm that the pursuit of perfection can inflict—and how embracing one's true self is the real path to healing.
[With TOI inputs]
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