Obsession with fair skin, It’s Time We Stop Defining People’s Identity With Their Skin Colour

To the one who says “Looks don’t matter” – Welcome to the desi culture. People, can you please get over your obsession with Fair Skin?

In our society, you get judged on your height, weight, colour, gender- basically everything.

Here, people are obsessed with White skin or Fair skin. No signs of this Stigma seems to end any sooner. We’re in the 20th century, yet someone’s colour is our concern and not the matter of fact that they’re human, with same colour flesh in their body and blood running through their veins, it isn’t any different.

If would have been there at her place, I would’ve replied, “Yes. Maybe. But less dark than your heart.” Why is being dark or black skin used to derogate someone? Is it abuse? Is it a curse to have dark skin? Why wasn’t it considered normal and okay to be dark? Why were these cosmetic companies were allowed to give taglines that would make a dark skin feel inferior? Or he/she isn’t what the society is accepting because “FAIR is beautiful ” that is what we’ve been fed.

Matrimony ads highlight the part where they say – they want “a fair, very fair bride – white like a pigeon ” And what about your crow? Is he going to apply “Fair and handsome”? The reason a lot of girls are not getting good proposals is that sadly, even the well-educated families have such “fair bride demands” and make all the qualifications – null and void. Men too face the same criticism for being dark and get rejected because of the colour of their skin but somehow, their salary package- saves them from getting further humiliated. While the women have to rub all the possible things on their face, to look fair.

Dark and black are not beautiful.

Imagine, looking in the mirror and not being able to accept your skin, your self just because some people judge you on a thing you did not get to choose. Something you can’t change -Feels pathetic. Trying to look like other “beautiful fair” people out there, they tend to lose themselves.

Hearing derogatory terms or facing rejection for the skin colour- is the worst thing to face. “You look fair-, she’s very fair and pretty, look how fair she is” are the compliments – why not she’s dark but look at those features. Those sharp beautiful features. Because here, dark and black is not beautiful. “She’s average- a bit dark, she’s Saavli, she’s not that good looking because she’s brown” Wow. Colour decides beauty here, since ages. Phew. We talk about racism in other places, but this racism here has no end either.

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Picture Credits – Fairness Cream Advertisement 

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