Miles to go!

‘True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul’, postulated Audrey Hepburn. Years later, Oprah Winfrey advocated for her, ‘What matters is how you feel inside, because feeling beautiful on the inside is key to looking good’. Is Gen Z finally lending ears to these wise words and setting off a paradigm shift in the empirical definition of beauty? Of late, the age-old discourse was set abuzz and ablaze when media reports cited a research claiming 3% decline in volume of fairness creams in 2023. Has the moment of reckoning finally arrived or ‘Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?’ is still calling the shots?

When ‘Made in Heaven’ web series returned last year for its sophomore run, the opening episode flagged that marriage, even in the century of AI, has fairness as one of its decisive fulcrums. The bride-to-be, though belonging to a family of material excesses, had to bear the brute of unhealthy obsession with fair skin. The sartorial choices were shown to be dictated by complexion, underlining a scalding commentary on colonial hangover. Society has been fixated on this single criterion of being beautiful. It has its deep roots in European colonialism across the globe. Post-colonialism and globalisation have also contributed their bits. The fair-skinned have been portrayed as the privileged, while the dark-skinned toiled on fields and streets. Global cinema, per se, has also crystallised this notorious notion in certain cases. There have been concerted efforts to develop a counter narrative and unshackle ourselves from the mighty and vicious grip of sexism and racism. However, the fairness cream industry continued to register unbridled growth, ringing in billions.

The advertisement pitches have to share and bear the blame for shaping the collective consciousness. Fairness has been painted as the master key to growing confidence and a glowing career. Expertise and excellence, ironically, were blunted and blurred. Even intimate female anatomy is not spared in ad blitzkrieg. What started from Afghan Snow has snowballed into a humongous business possibility. The Advertising Standards Council of India intervened in 2014 and tried to address its menacing proportions. ‘Dark is Beautiful’ advocacy campaign was also spearheaded by celebrated actor Nandita Das to build an alternate stream of thought. It penetrated considerable mind-space, but the overbearing mindset was not dented enough.

The fairness cream industry, rather, blended gender divide with the launch of men-specific products. The metrosexual fad amplified the shrill and pumped up biz potential. The array of criticisms eventually gained steam after #BlackLivesMatter movement created ripples and leading brands jumped on a renaming spree. With the advent of social media, hashtag campaigns gained traction and stereotypes were challenged. The percentage decline in consumer demand for fairness creams is perhaps indicative of a subtle yet sublime awakening among cosmopolitan Gen Z, whose bias is embrace, not exclude. But, the larger question remains – is this change-for-better holistic, inclusive and effective enough? The answer is of both hope and despair. The report states younger consumers are gradually moving away from ‘fair skin’ products. The millennials are said to be shifting to ‘brightening and hydration functionalities’. However, this should be taken not with a pinch of salt, but with a pound of salt. Literally, fairness tubes have evolved into high-end siblings as oxygen infused bleach, chemical peel, laser treatment and celeb-among-all glutathione. The adversities of lightening practices and chemical exposures have been debated endlessly. Glutathione, being the buzzword, is now being subjected to the same discussion, deliberation and dissertation.

Means are not the concern, mindset is. The elephant in the room happens to be this manufactured desire becoming the art of economic dominance. Social Media filters have somewhere merged tangible and intangible worlds. Multiple even-out tools are snatching realism and sowing unrealism. A harmless act of posting a photo is going through rounds of filtration, variably or invariably trying to enhance tone (euphemism for fairness). The crisis is such that an original post is tagged as #nofilter.

The concept of colourism should end. The perpetuation of bias should die its natural death. Reversing, undoing and decolonisation are what the time demands. The popular beauty standards also have to evolve. The silver lining is the so-called woke advertising industry is waking up to inclusivity. The MUA (trendy acronym for make-up artists) are not driving for utopian standards. In all fairness, still a thousand miles to go. But, the day is not far when embrace will lead to emancipation.

The writer is a communication professional. Views expressed