Kareena Kapoor Khan’s dietician reveals the real story behind her size zero era and ageless fitness: Dal-chawal, parathas and discipline

Rujuta Diwekar clarified that contrary to popular belief, neither she nor Kareena coined the label that defined an entire generation’s fitness obsession.

Kareena Kapoor Khan’s “size zero” phase may have become one of Bollywood’s most-quoted pop-culture moments, but her long-time dietician Rujuta Diwekar says the term and the hype were never part of their plan. Speaking to Janice Sequeira, Rujuta opened up about the actress’ fitness journey, her much-discussed transformation for Tashan (2008), and the reason Kareena continues to look “fresh, fit and fabulous” even in her 40s.

Rujuta Diwekar clarified that contrary to popular belief, neither she nor Kareena coined the label that defined an entire generation’s fitness obsession. “Size zero is not a term that I or Bebo coined. It just happened to come from some media interview. That’s the first time that I figured out that there is something called size zero. It was just a young girl who got in good shape. There was no difference in her size. She did Tashan and Jab We Met at the same time,” she explained.

The now-iconic physical transformation, Rujuta added, became a cultural phenomenon simply because people weren’t used to seeing mainstream actresses be so open about their diets, especially when that diet included everyday Indian meals. Kareena, a proud Punjabi, has consistently spoken about enjoying home-style food even at the peak of her fitness regime.

Recalling their early years working together, Rujuta said Kareena’s approach helped break myths around restrictive fad diets. “I started working with Kareena long before this Tashan thing happened. It helped us mainstream the fact that she ate dal, chawal and parathas and looked the way she did. She was also 27 at that time. But the big thing is that today she is in her 40s,” Rujuta said.

What stands out, according to the dietician, is Kareena’s consistency and her holistic approach to wellness.

Also read: Kareena Kapoor shares “Bits and Bobs of life” in heartwarming Instagram post, see here

“She still looks just as fresh, just as fit, looks fab, and follows her heart. That’s what health and fitness actually looks like, where you have a complete life not just in terms of how you look but also what you do in your life, relationships, work, your children, the way you conduct your life… so I feel fortunate to have had that opportunity and for the fact that she was so open about it and spoke about it so openly. She didn’t need to talk about me at all, but she did,” she shared.

Interestingly, Kareena herself had previously revealed that even while aiming for the “size zero” body, she was not starving herself. In a chat with Vicky Kaushal for The Hollywood Reporter India, she admitted she was happily eating her Punjabi staple for breakfast: parathas with white makkhan.