India is a country of diversity with its cultural heritage, traditions, and economic standards. But despite all the good facts, there is a very harsh reality of Indian society. Fairness obsession in India still arise, and this stereotype is still going on, which was established in history.
People with fair skin are treated well, while those with darker skin are treated very badly. On some occasions, it becomes a very painful situation for a person with darker skin to handle the humiliations that are often given by Indian societies.
In recent years, this issue of colorism has gained widespread attention. However, some campaigns, such as “Dark is Beautiful,” were organized in 2009 by Women of Worth (WOW) to challenge the idea that an Indian woman’s beauty is evaluated by her skin color.
8 Most Common Reasons For Indian’s Obsession With Fair Skin
There are various reasons for Indian society to hate people with dark skin and love fairer skin persons. In this article, I am giving you the basic and common reasons for the Indian’s obsession with fairness.
1] The Colonial Influence Of The British
It started when the Britishers came to India and started ruling; they created a situation in which they promoted fair skin and brainwashed indian’s minds by saying that fair-skinned people are associated with power, privilege, and superiority.
They often humiliate darker-skinned people and do not give any chances of opportunities in work, education, and other sectors. From that time, Indians believed in their words and accepted that fair-skinned people would have more power and opportunities, and they started hating dark skin tones.
2] Biasness In The Society
It often happens in some Indian society that people with darker skin face biases, and they do not accept them and give them equal opportunities as fair-skinned people. This is very sad, but this is a reality in job interviews, marriages, and some other occasions; darker-skinned people feel very ashamed.
3] Fairness Advertisements By The Media
This is another reason that Indian media promotes fairness cream and lotion advertisements, which is very bad for promoting such things. These ads are just doing these promotions for their benefits, but this impacts various people with dark skin color in a bad way.
4] Higher Chances For Marriage And Acceptance
It is said that in India, people with fair skin will have a higher chance of marriage, and this is very true in various areas or societies. Some girls and boys face a lot of problems in arranged marriages, and most girls feel very humiliated by their dark skin color. This is one of the major reasons for Indian’s obsession with fair skin.
5] Stereotype Nature Of Indian Families
Some Indian families have a stereotypical nature about dark-skinned individuals, which is running for a longer period of time. They don’t want to accept such people and treat them very badly by not giving them equal opportunities.
There are various examples of people humiliating for their skin color; many Bollywood actors and actresses have also felt some problems because of their skin color; even in schools, various children feel humiliated.
6] Racial Bias And Prejudice In Society
In various places, a dark-skinned color person has to face a racial bias from others, which is very sad. They have to sacrifice a lot for their happiness and dreams, and they are being compared with other people with fair skin for various factors. But despite all these, every dark skin people live their life with a smile and happiness.
7] Globalization And Influence From Western Culture
Indians are very influenced by other people’s cultures and traditions; they compare each other by caste, religion, and even color. By following Western culture, some Indian people start hating others with darker skin and think that they are not looking good and smart in their opinion.
8] Psychological Impact Of Having Dark Skin
It is a very sensitive subject, and sometimes, it affects a lot of individuals in all their lives. Starting from their first school, various fair-skinned people judge and humiliate them; some daily relatives also do the same; when they go to new cities again, they face the same issues. So, this is a never-ending story in some Indian societies, and it is going on continuously.
Conclusion
At last, I just want to say that Indians and their obsession with fairness will stop only when we take one step forward toward awareness of dark skin tones. Today’s generation should understand that every skin color is beautiful and pure, and they should inform their families, friends, and society about this; only then will our Indian society embrace everyone.
