Hunny, a young and modern indian girl from the middle-class, met in a public park, in Jaïpur :

"I wouldn't be able to say if you are beautiful or not, as in India, fairness is the criterion # 1 to say if someone is beautiful or not. Features are coming only in # 2."

So, white is the key.
The key of Beauty.

You will able to find many articles about this incredible
- for a european girl -
obsession for fairness in India.

Obsession that many Indians are underlining nowadays. Their reflexions are all interesting in their own way, and they help us to understand better this fact which is now established.

I post here two videos, found on You Tube :

- I chose the first one because of the pseudo-traditional background. This ad is clever, putting in front side strong values of Indian society - as the link between daughters and fathers, respect for parents' authority - and the natural and ayurvedic properties of the product. I appreciated especially the special effects which insist on the dad's power, a kind of magical Guru. I imagine the ad-makers should have been fed up to work on this subject once again, and they bungled this video for my biggest pleasure :-)

- I would say : "les hommes ne sont pas en reste". I admit, I have chosen this one because of Shahrukh Khan. His omnipresence in the media is an other "very-interesting-subject" I will talk about later I think !

#1


#2


Some links :
- Indian Women Criticize 'Fair and Lovely' Ideal
- Fair and Lovely Fairness Cream
- "Do we love the beach ?
- Beware of the intelligent consumers
- Obsession for Fair Complexion
- Bollywood from beyond - Fair Skin Obsession in India
- The Obsession with "fair-and-lovely"