Not Fair. Not at all.

7:13:00 pm


I’ll jump straight to the question – do fairness cream ads bother you? You know the ones where the girl is dark and depressed due to a variety of reasons – she’s unemployed, or she’s being rejected by prospective grooms or she’s just having body image issues. And then, suddenly a well-meaning friend goes up to her and says, “Why don’t you try xyz fairness cream?”

Yeah, why don’t you? Why don’t you just go ahead and join the thousands out there to show your support to the burgeoning fairness cream industry? After all, let’s face it, you are kind of a loser with that complexion. Just apply a little of that magic cream, and voila!! You’ll be transformed!! Just like that!! You’ll immediately get a new wardrobe in multiple shades of pink, your hair will be perfect, you’ll have company head hunters and cool single guys all running after you and you’ll end up on a billboard/magazine cover. So what’s not to like??

Plenty. I can’t get the logic that only fair complexioned people can get jobs and get married. I mean does fairness automatically give you some kind of compatibility factor? Or does it indicate some skill left unsaid on your resume? Seriously, what is it?


Image Courtesy: makeupandbeauty

There’s this nauseating ad about a girl who has a crush on a guy who doesn’t give a paisa about her. Then she goes and puts on some cream which gives her a new style and great hair and all that, and now that MCP comes fawning over her. And she is flattered that her complexion got her noticed!!

There’s this even more infuriating ad which prompted me to write this post in the first place. This girl (who could already give Snow White a complex) is thinking about a guy and she actually says, “Maybe he’ll notice me if I get rid of my dark complexion”. And you really want such a shallow dude? Aaaargghhhh!!!!!!

Everyone knows what the standard Indian matrimonial ad says. Maybe now they’ll also mention – “Bride should be at least a level 2 on the fairness meter, as seen on fairness cream packs”. Then it’ll be easy to grade all prospective brides based on this wonderful meter. Ugh!

God, this is disgusting. But the fact is that all the major cosmetic brands are coming up with their own versions of fairness creams, the nomenclature varying – whitening, pure white, natural white, light, white perfect – white, white, white!! That’s when I wonder if no one else is getting offended and annoyed by these ads. It’s a simple matter of genetics. Your skin color is inherited just like the color of your hair and your eyes. Sigh!
 Image Courtesy: hubpages

Are you bugged by the ads for fairness creams? Or are you okay with it? Do tell me!

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12 comments

  1. I have cried hoarse about it too..Nut now, I have given up..It is after all, people buying them that make these companies to come up with such 'whitening' products rite..People need to change their definition of beauty and think beyond the colour of the skin ..If they don't learn soon enough, then tough on them :)

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    1. Great comment Natasha.
      I'm India. My skin is like chocolat.
      But I'm happy. I live in a countrly in Western Europe, full of caucasian white people.
      I never felt bad about my skincolor.
      When I discovered this fair and lovely obsession in India, I could only think:
      I have to be proud, I won't let this phenomenon degrade me.

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    2. It really is an obsession here. It's not even just fair or dark, it's about varying degrees of fairness.

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  2. @Natasha
    Thats right....nowadays, there are a lot of dusky people in places which used to be reserved for the 'fair', like movies, modeling etc. I thought that meant that the Indian concept of beauty was changing but the markets prove otherwise :-(

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  3. I have to say that this is the case in some areas of Nigeria especially the area where i'm from. Light skinned girls are always considered much prettier than us darker ones. what makes me even more upset is when they start complaining that Westerners can be racist; i always tell them we are racist within our own nationality based on the shade of our skins. I like my chocolate skin and although it was difficult at first, i've grown to accept it.

    The only time i would ever consider anything to fade my complexion is if i'm trying to get rid of a scar i have from an injury or acne

    xo Stephanie

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  4. @Stephanie
    Right Stephanie, unlike public perception changes and people start accepting their own beauty (like you!), things will remain the same
    :-(

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  5. being dusky is considered a positive in the fashion circles in west.....look at naomi campbell...shame on us indians who fall prey to these petty gimmicks by fairness cream selling brands!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  6. Hated those ads all my life! I had written a post on it as well a couple of years ago. It's annoying how they show you can't get a job or a guy if you are dark. And mind you, what annoys me more is that this is a country which is first to cry 'racism' about other countries. You don't see ads in western countries telling you to be whit though!

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  7. I think it is a kind of motivation for all those women who feel really depressed, I think that's really important for our self-motivation.

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  8. Yup, I hate those ads too. And now that I live in the US, I see so many not-so-attractive fair skinned people that the fairness obsession in India almost seems comical.

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    Replies
    1. I hate it even more when superstars endorse them without any shame. They aren't all that fair themselves and they get photoshopped just to sell the damn cream!

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