Remo D’Souza says he was called ‘kaalia’ for his skin colour as he grooves to Hum Kale Hain To Kya Hua: ‘Hated it’

Remo D’Souza has shared a video set to Mohammed Rafi’s song Hum Kale Hain To Kya Hua Dilwale Hain. The director-choreographer recalled being mocked for the colour of his skin and shared he was referred to with terms such as ‘kaalia’ and ‘kalu’. Remo revealed to make him feel better, his mother would often sing the Mohammed Rafi song eventually became his favourite. His wife Lizelle D’Souza also features in the video Remo shared. Also read: Remo D’Souza on facing racism: ‘When I was growing up, people used to call me names’

Sharing it on Instagram, Remo wrote, “I used to hate it when people called me #kaalia #kalu, but then my mom told me that it’s not the #colour it’s the #heart that matters and used to sing this #song. Since then this became my fav song. Now I sing this song to @lizelleremodsouza.”

Remo and Lizelle can be seen grooving to the song in the video – he sports a black sleeveless tee, sunglasses and has his hair tied in braids. Lizelle commented to the video, “What you are telling me… I mean like really hmmmmmmmm.” Choreographer Terence Lewis said, “Black is beautiful brother!”

A fan commented, “Yes you have great, lovely heart.” Another said, “Sir, you are a gem of person sir aap ko pataa nahi hai ki hamare life mai aapki kitni importance hai (you don’t know your value in our lives).” One more fan said in Hindi, “It’s better to have dark skin than to have a dark heart.”

Remo is among the most noted choreographers in India. He is also a filmmaker and has directed films like Race 3, ABCD 3 and Street Dancer 3D.

Remo had once told Times of India in an interview, “I have faced racism and prejudice due to my skin colour ever since my childhood. It is a subject that I have dealt with very closely and experienced it whenever I travelled abroad. When I was growing up, people used to call me names. I used to just ignore it because I thought that maybe they are saying it because I look a certain way.”