Actress Tamannaah Bhatia has spoken out about veteran actor Annu Kapoor’s controversial remark on her appearance, saying she chooses to focus on her work rather than give such comments importance. She stressed that creative people must learn to distinguish between opinions worth hearing and those better left aside.
According to NDTV, Tamannaah addressed the issue at NDTV Profit Ignite 2026, where she also discussed her approach to acting and career choices. Asked about Kapoor’s comments on her complexion and body, she said listening was important for creative people, but so was deciding what to retain and what to filter out.
“I think that as a creative person, our most important task is to listen. And when we listen, what we keep and what we filter is very important to understand. And because you are also a woman, you can understand that if we start giving importance to such things, then perhaps we will not be able to move forward in life,” she said.
Tamannaah added that she does not allow such remarks to distract her from her professional goals. “I don’t even see these things. I focus on my work. I focus on what I want to make. I focus on my acting career,” she said.
She also described acting as a form of service rather than simply a profession. “Genuinely, according to me, I want to do my work like a service. And I do that. And maybe that’s why it reaches people, because somewhere it comes from the right place,” she said.
The controversy dates back to October 2025, when Kapoor appeared on YouTuber Shubhankar Mishra’s channel. During the conversation, Mishra showed him a clip of Tamannaah performing to Aaj Ki Raat, the popular song from the horror comedy Stree 2. After Mishra expressed his admiration for the actress, Kapoor commented on her appearance, saying: “Mashallah kya dudhiya badan hai,” meaning “What a milky-white body”.
The remark drew criticism on social media, with several users describing it as sexist, inappropriate and objectifying. Kapoor went on to say: “She is the reason why kids sleep with her song, with her milky face and body, if she is making our children sleep sweetly, it’s very good, man… It will be a great blessing for this country that our children get a good and healthy night’s sleep.”
In July 2026, Kapoor defended his comments in an interview with Zoom. He argued that some of the backlash reflected a preference for English over Hindi. He also said he would apologise to Tamannaah if his remarks had hurt her.
