Ciara Sotto might be a successful singer and actress (and even an accomplished pole dancer—she's the founder of the Philippine Pole and Aerial Sports Association, ICYDK!), but even she is not immune from the beauty standards that continuously plague women in our society.
Case in point: Being morena has always been a sore spot for the 43-year-old actress in the past. Growing up, she was always surrounded by mestizas, including her family members like her mom Helen Gamboa and her sisters Lala and Apples Sotto.
READ MORE: These Celebrities Will Inspire You To Embrace Your Morena Skin
"My two sisters are so fair so I grew up kind of, like, insecure," she shared in an exclusive interview with PEP.ph during an international beauty brand's event.
She recalled that she would get teased during her younger years for her skin color.
"Parang feeling ko hindi ako maganda. Kasi parang nasa culture natin in the Philippines na pag maitim ka, hindi ka maganda. Mas maganda kapag maputi, diba?"
Despite how difficult it was, Ciara eventually learned to shrug off the comments and grew to love her morena skin. "I realized when I was growing up na parang, 'No, God made me unique,' diba?"
She is also staunch in her belief against altering her complexion via brightening treatments to cater to a society that usually favored morenas.
"I like my natural color, and I have no intention of changing it," she declared. "I don't like altering anything in my face or in my body."
She added: "Mas gusto ko yung natural skin color ko, yung natural ko na itsura, diba? Kasi nga parang feeling ko, it's more Filipino when I love my country. It's more Filipino if you're kayumanggi. So I'm really proud of my color and I'm really proud that I'm morena."
The 43-year-old actress was also quick to point out that she doesn't mind what other people do to their bodies, emphasizing that it's their own personal choice.
"Of course, if you want to change something, you wish you could. You would, diba? And I have nothing against everyone who goes and [does that]... I have nothing against people who get their bodies or their faces enhanced."
"I have nothing against that. That's just not me," she stated.
Ciara has always been a big believer in being proud of the skin you're in. In 2020, she and her cousin Danica Sotto-Pingris founded PRINSESA (Pinays, Ready to Inspire, Nourish, Serve & Encourage Self-Acceptance).
"I felt like I never got the 'princess' parts in school because I wasn’t pretty enough, but that didn’t stop me from being an artist. Our skin color, dress size, hair texture, body type, or our past mistakes, etc. shouldn’t limit us," she wrote in the introductory IG post for their new project. "We should love the way we look. We should appreciate what we have. We were blessed with it."
Hear, hear!
