Milind Soman on his nude photo: It was like people never saw anybody naked before

Milind Soman File.Pic/Yogen Shah

A few weeks back, the Iron Man of India, as he has been hailed with this title, Bollywood actor Milind Soman posted a picture on his Instagram account where he could be seen running naked on the beach. There was a section of social media users that looked at it with disdain.

Commenting on the backlash and the furore that followed, Soman spoke to Times of India and gave his take on the controversy. He said, "I don't know why! It was like people never saw anybody naked before, It is crazy!"

He added, "I don't really notice trolls. Sometimes I look for it, just for fun sake. Even if you look at that (nude) picture, it is not really trolling. I know what is trolling. When I see some people and the response they get on social media, I really wonder - how does it affect their mental health. Because it is such an attack."

He also revealed that his wife clicked the photo, and there were positive responses too. Soman said, "Even for my nude picture, 99% of people were like - WOW! This is amazing! And it was shot by my wife, it was not like some photographer was hired or some newspaper shot it. I think people were just a little bit shocked! Especially those who are new to Internet culture as these people are not exposed to what's already on the Internet which is basically the real world. For those, I think my picture was a wake up call."

And while talking to IANS recently, the actor talked about the 'sex symbol' tag bestowed on him. "The tag of sex symbol doesn't bother me. I will tell you why -- because, for a man to be regarded as a sex symbol is great. Men are very happy to be regarded as sex symbols because that is something extra for them," Milind said.

However, he acknowledges the gender disparity in this context. "When a woman is regarded as a sex symbol, it might be everything that she is seen for, which is not a good thing," he observed.

The actor explained: "That is part of the whole discrimination on the part of the way we see women. Women have been objectified to that extent. Men have not been objectified to that extent that it (being a sex symbol) is all that they stand for."

The actor feels things are changing for the better. "I think it is going away. I see it becoming a little bit more equal. The whole thing can't change at once but different aspects, especially gender equality, will change quicker than other aspects," he added.