Twinkle Khanna says a ‘foolish’ relative commented on her daughter Nitara’s skin tone, she wanted to be as ‘fair as Aarav bhaiya’

Author Twinkle Khanna recently shared a very interesting anecdote from her life that concerned her daughter Nitara. In her latest blog, Twinkle, who is the daughter of legends Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia, and the wife of Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, recalled a time when a relative’s comment on her daughter’s skin tone demotivated her to continue her swimming lessons as she suddenly wanted to look as fair as her brother Aarav Kumar. In her blog for The Times Of India, the actor-turned-author wrote, “There was a time when my little one wanted to discontinue her swimming lessons. A tan had become her nemesis. ‘I want to be the same colour as bhaiya.’ A chance remark by a foolish relative within her earshot had not gone unnoticed. ‘She is so cute but not as fair as her brother!'” Twinkle, who truly believes that books act as a navigational tool to guide us through life, handed her daughter Frida Kahlo’s illustrated biography after seeing her demotivated and concerned for her skin tone. Frida Kahlo was a Mexican painter, popularly known for her uncompromising and brilliantly coloured self-portraits that explored themes such as identity, human body, and death, among others. “She had a gleaming skin of a shade not unlike hers, with eyebrows that met in the centre, a formidably talented woman as a role model,” wrote Twinkle. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Twinkle Khanna (@twinklerkhanna) After reading the book, Twinkle shared her daughter now claims, “she doesn’t need to use as much sunblock as her brother. ‘White is a light colour, so it gets dirty fast like my T-shirt, brown is darker, so it doesn’t'”. ALSO READ | T20 World Cup 2024: Anushka Sharma goes from upset to sporting a big smile as India defeats Pak by narrow margin The author of Mrs Funnybones also shared how in this digital age, after nagging her daughter to read and failed threats of a tight slap, she implied the advise of her father Rajesh Khanna, who was also an avid reader, and started this ritual of reading books with her daughter being on the “same page”, but just not at the same time. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Twinkle Khanna (@twinklerkhanna) She wrote, “We made a deal that included reading a minimum of 20 pages a day and annotating the book. We would underline words we didn’t understand, compete in marking interesting passages and great metaphors, leave comments and questions for each other in the margins.” She added, “My daughter and I chased each other’s thoughts and ideas on the margins of the printed pages. If I needed to prod her to read more, instead of bribes or threats, I just had to tell her that I was way ahead. Then, like the PT Usha of literary pursuits, she would race across the pages.” After tying the knot with Akshay Kumar in 2001, Twinkle Khanna quit acting citing she didn’t enjoy the profession anymore. Ever since, Twinkle has authored several books including Welcome To Paradise and Pyjamas are Forgiving, among others.