Nancy Divya Vikram, who is known for speaking against body-shaming through her social media page Snazyy Tamilachi, has responded to the criticism surrounding her role in Rajinikanth’s ‘Jailer 2.‘ The actor played Sheela, a small but noticeable character in the film. Some viewers felt that the scenes involving her appeared to make fun of her body size. Nancy Divya has now explained how she viewed the role and why she believes the scenes should be seen in the context of the character rather than as an attempt to mock someone’s appearance.

Nancy Divya explains her ‘Jailer 2’ character, Sheela

Speaking in an interview with Cinema Vikatan, Nancy Divya said Sheela was written as a fun-loving character who enjoys food. She explained that her understanding of the role was different from how some viewers had interpreted it. “The character of Sheela given to me in this film is a lively food lover. You are looking at this character as body-shaming, but I see it as a character,” she said. Nancy Divya added that the scene would have remained the same even if a slimmer actor had played the role. She also pointed out that her first scene with Rajinikanth did not include any direct comment about her body weight.

Nancy Divya says ‘Jailer 2’ scenes with Rajinikanth were edited

Nancy Divya explained that several scenes featuring her and Rajinikanth were removed from the final cut of ‘Jailer 2.’ Recalling the original sequences, she said, “There were scenes where I would tease Superstar by saying that he was old. I would also tell him that he was coming late to the shop and threaten to cut his salary. There were scenes where I would scold Superstar once, and he would tease me once. But all those scenes were cut.” She added, “If all the scenes had been shown together, people might not have felt that it was body-shaming.” The actor suggested that the limited scenes shown in the film may have influenced how audiences viewed her character, Sheela.

Nancy Divya speaks against body-shaming and hopes for better roles

Nancy also spoke about the need to change society’s attitude towards people based on their body size. “People who are fat can wear whatever clothes they want. Being fat is not just because of food; there are many reasons for it. I have been saying this strongly everywhere,” she said.She added that people should question why they find jokes about someone’s appearance entertaining. “When our own system encourages people to laugh at those who are fat, we cannot do much about those who make fun of them as long as there are people who enjoy it. First, we have to change ourselves. We must understand what to appreciate, what not to appreciate, what to take as comedy and what not to take as comedy,” Nancy Divya said.

About ‘Jailer 2’

‘Jailer 2’ stars Rajinikanth in the lead role, with Nelson Dilipkumar directing the sequel to the 2023 blockbuster. The film also features Ramya Krishnan, Vidya Balan, SJ Suryaj, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Yogi Babu, Namo Narayana, Mohanlal, Shivarajkumar, Jackie Shroff, and several other actors in key roles. Anirudh Ravichander has composed the music for the action entertainer, which continues the story of Tiger Muthuvel Pandian.