‘Those tikku-tikku mottu comments; relatives never let you be': Kusha Kapila reflects on her lifelong weight loss journey in new GRWM video

Indian Express

5 days ago

Digital creator and actor Kusha Kapila has always been known for her wit, candour, and funny storytelling. While her ongoing journey with weight loss has been publicly documented over the years, her recent transformation marks a notable shift. This time, there's a difference in her approach — she appears more grounded, healthier, and genuinely committed to sustainable change rather than quick fixes.
In her latest YouTube video, a 'Get Ready With Me' episode like no other — Kusha opens up about her relationship with her body, navigating weight loss through different stages of life, and why this has never been about a 'makeover.'
'I don't think mera makeover hua hai,' Kusha says in the video, brushing off the sensationalist headlines that call her transformation a glow-up or a reinvention. 'In the last month, I've seen so many transformation reels about myself that I feel like I'm having an out-of-body experience. It's like someone else is talking about my body more than I am.'
Instead of focusing on quick-fix tips or diet fads, Kusha stresses the importance of introspection. 'Everyone wants to know how I lost weight — I want to talk about why. That's more important,' she says early on in the video, while doing her makeup.
Her 'why' is rooted in a complex mix of early body image struggles, family pressures, academic expectations, and the ever-shifting relationship with one's own self-worth.
In the 21-minute video, Kusha recalls becoming aware of her body when she was just 10 years old. 'People around me made me conscious of my weight. You know, those tikku-tikku mottu comments. Relatives never let you be,' she says.
She added, 'In 10th grade, when I had my boards, I ended up gaining a lot of weight. A lot of students do, by the way, and there was a lot of pressure.' After finishing her board exams, her mother enrolled her in a local gym. 'Movement is medicine — that's what she said. I ran on the treadmill, did strength training, and did floor exercises. I think I lost 20–22 kilos.'
In college, the freedom and chaos of a new life took over. 'I was shocked at how different the world was outside my mother's supervision,' she says, recalling how she didn't even attend classes, instead immersing herself in theatre, friendships and food. 'I used to just go for my nukkad natak (street plays) because I became part of the theater society. I felt this is my world, this is my everything,' Kusha recalls.
Kusha explains that her body didn't feel like a priority during these years. What mattered more was the validation she received for her humour and presence. 'People liked me for my jokes, my impersonations, my personality. My body wasn't the most interesting thing about me, so I didn't work on it.'
And like so many young women, she admits that early ideas of attractiveness were often tied to male validation — something she didn't crave, and often didn't receive. But instead, she found joy and identity among her female friends. 'It was our world, and everyone else was just living in it.'
As she approached her 30s, the validation she once sought from her appearance shifted entirely to her work. 'Work became my biggest source of validation. Again, everything was validation-related. This time, it wasn't my body — it was my work.'
Then came a dramatic life change, a move to Mumbai. 'I realised I'm so lonely here. I moved at 30. All my fundamental friendships are in Delhi — my peers, my core support group.' That loneliness, she says, became an invisible but overwhelming presence. 'I kept wondering: What will I do? I was nearing 33. At 13, 23, and now 33, will I keep trying to lose weight once every decade?'
Driven by curiosity more than anything else, she got a full-body checkup. 'The results were alarming. It was one of those report cards where everything was just red. I couldn't afford to be this lazy about my life anymore.'
And then came a new challenge — one that, for someone with a camera-facing job, felt almost cruel — adult acne. 'At 29, I suddenly got adult acne. And if you've never had acne in your life, it just hits differently. It's crippling — emotionally, mentally. Especially when you don't know why it's happening.'
She added, 'Every doctor kept saying the same thing: You have to change your lifestyle. You need strength training, weight training. That's the only way your acne will go.'
When she finally began seeing her skin clear up and experienced a change in her mood, it felt like a win. 'I was like — acne, your time is up. Bahut ho gaya.' Under professional supervision, she started taking care of diet and doing consistent workouts, the details of which she did not share as she stated that everyone is different and she is no expert. But she reiterated that fitness is necessary to feel better mentally and physically, and she feels like a new person now.