Bhumi was always on the heavier side and knew that with the weight of approximately 72 kgs she could never make it as a conventional heroine. She was working as an Assistant Casting Director in Yash Raj Films when she was offered the role of Sandhya in Dum LagaKeHaisha. She was asked to put on more weight for her role and she ate high-calorie food like butter chicken, dal makhani everyday for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

By the time the movie had released, Bhumi had already lost 10 kgs. She says, “Honestly, I didn’t have a plan. I tried to do it by myself. I told myself, if it didn’t work, I’ll get professional help. But I didn’t start out by going to a dietician or a nutritionist. I’m not against it… But back then, I just knew that I would have to invest in physical hard work. I started with an hour at the gym. Then I started playing badminton and simultaneously increased my hours at the gym. There are times where you want to lose weight, and then there are times where you just don’t care. I realized it has to be a combination of both”

Bhumi knew very well that resisting temptations won’t work at all and would leave her wanting her more. So she found other ways to retain her favorite foods,” I had the yummiest food. I believe a good chicken breast, if done well, is the best thing ever. I just picked healthier options. I quit wheat and refined sugar. I switched to whole grains. If you want to eat rotis, eat jawar ki bhakri. The Indian meal is the most balanced meal there is. I’d have one roti for dinner, and two rotis for lunch, and a cup of brown rice. I would put jaggery or honey in my tea. I would also eat rajgira… My only nutritionist was my mom.”

Her answer to the question “What is your Secret?” is “I believe in detoxifying, and that’s what I did for the first two months. I drank liters and liters of aloe vera. Also, for minerals, I took supplements: because it was such a drastic weight loss, I didn’t want my skin or hair to go bad. I started having less than 90 grams of carbs, then went further down to 70, because your body doesn’t need a lot of carbs.”

She says, “When we were growing up, we were never told not to eat this or that. But of course, ice creams and cold drinks weren’t allowed. And even if we put on weight, we were never told you are becoming fat, it was always, you’re beautiful as you are, we love you, you are god’s special child. This was the constant boost of confidence in my life. That’s something that really helped me. Be accepting of your body type. People put labels quite easily. ‘Moti, ’Golu’, is common. Let it not affect your confidence. Keep telling yourself I am pretty, I am confident. You don’t have to fit any mould created by society. I know a lot of women in my life who don’t come in your standard shape and size and they are some of the most beautiful women I know. I don’t know why there has to be a stigma attached to any weight. Weight loss is overhyped in India and around the world. Stop making weight such a big deal!”