By Salwa Abdulrahman:
“Yeh kaali kaali aankhen
Yeh gore gore gaal….
(Those black eyes/Those white cheeks…)”
If you grew up in the nineties, this song from Shah Rukh Khan’s hit movie “Baazigar” may ring some bells. In a country where fair skin is instinctively equated with beauty, no one bothered to ask, “Why gore gore gaal (Why white cheeks)?” If the heroine had a darker complexion, would that make her unworthy of appraisal? Yes, it seems.
From matrimonial ads mentioning the bride’s fair skin before even specifying her age or place, to fairness cream ads promising higher employability for “pearly-skinned” girls, our nation has a behemoth problem with skin biases. No wonder India has a booming $450 million fairness cream industry, with Hindustan Unilever’s “Fair and Lovely” in the lead, owning more than 50% share of the market. According to research, the whitening cream market is expanding at a rate of nearly 18% a year, thanks to all the Bollywood stars involved in its endorsement.
Based on a survey published on their website, Vaseline Healthy White claims that “8 out of 10 women in India believe that fair skin gives them an additional advantage in the society“. The preconceived notion that a white skin tone is associated with racial superiority and financial power can be traced back to the 15th century BC, when the fair-skinned Aryans established a caste system which allowed them to become the aristocracy, which then diminished the local Dravidians to slavery.
Interestingly, while the Western world has shrugged off most of its xenophobia, we still have a long way to go. On the other side of the world, pale-skinned men and women strive to acquire a healthy tan by visiting tanning salons or spending long hours at the beach soaking in the sun, while we Indians are still seeking the Holy Grail in skin whitening.
When People’s magazine announced Beyonce as the most beautiful woman in the world a few years ago, most of my Indian friends were sceptical. “But isn’t she so brown?”, “Yuck, an Afro-American?” “She looks like a madrasi!” – the list of such prejudicial comments went on and on. A tanned face is considered a virtue by the Caucasians, but to Indian eyes, it is a shortcoming not to be seen lightly (no pun intended). God forbid if an Indian girl is born with dusky skin- her whole life, she would be tormented by well-meaning maasis (aunts) smearing haldi all over her in a desperate attempt to help her look like Aishwarya Rai.
Surprisingly, it is not just women who bear the brunt of such nonsensical preconceptions; men too are being sold a false narrative – that being fair makes them more alluring to the opposite sex. While Western literature glorifies its male protagonists as “tall, dark and handsome”, we prefer our heroes to be “fair and handsome”. Subsequently, brands like Emami and Garnier cash in on lightening creams and soaps designed especially for men.
Advertisements play a vital role in influencing our buying habits. When a product like Fair and Lovely promises to give you two tones fairer skin in just four weeks, it seems almost irresistible to try. But what kind of a message are they sending, by demeaning brown skin and persuading us to change our natural complexion?
A few months ago, I saw an ad for Indulekha White Soap, starring South India’s beloved actor, Mammootty. The opening scene shows Mammooty interviewing an extremely fair girl, who he feels he had seen before. It turns out, the girl had been interviewed for the same job before; only she had been rejected because of her dull skin. But now, because of her ‘improved’ skin tone, she has a sure shot at getting selected. I mean, seriously? Of all the qualities the candidate can have, a fair complexion is the one that makes her employable? Not her personality, not her education, and certainly not her intelligence – it is the colour of her skin that guarantees her success in the interview. Well, good luck solving your company’s complex issues with her fair skin, mister!
When it comes to promoting racial discrimination, our movies are by and large to blame. Across all Indian film industries, the lead roles are exclusively reserved for fair-skinned actors and actresses, while the darker dudes are given the role of sidekicks, servants or villains. To make matters worse, directors often employ European women as ‘props’ in the background of item songs, as their skin colour is thought to be more appealing to viewers. Such songs often mention the heroine’s gorapan (fairness). Think of the absurdity of the lines, “Chittiyan kalaiyan ve, oh baby meri white kalaiyan ve.” Hmph.
Another trend that can be observed in both classical and modern song lyrics, is the allegory between the heroine’s beautiful face and the shining white moon. This again draws attention to her fairness.
Dark skin is the butt of a plethora of jokes in Indian cinema, ranging from the openly offensive to the consciously discreet roasts linking black skin to hideousness and depravity. Films like “Chennai Express” and “Two States” stereotype madrasis as repugnant and pedestrian.
We have been equating fair skin with beauty and success for generations. Even in kindergarten, little boys and girls are subject to ridicule if their skin is dark. Such kids are called derogatory names like kaala or kaalia. This results in lifelong psychological issues like lower self-esteem and shattered confidence, starting at an early age. Dark-skinned children are led to believe that they look ugly and uncouth, while fair-skinned boys and girls enjoy a heightened sense of self-worth.
It is high time we reverse the damage done by our ancestors and overcome this deep-rooted bias. Fair skin should not be the ticket to a happy matrimony or a successful career. It’s time to broaden our perspective to see that ‘fair is not always lovely’.