Why are Indian people so obsessed with skin shade?

Question

This is absolutely true and each time I have had conversations with both Indian men and women they have mentioned how important this is but not why.

With the furore over the Jade Goody/Shilpa Sheety comments I was not overly surprised to see rather backward comments made by Shilpa Shetty's mum in yesterday's Daily Mail when she said that her daughter was not "the real beauty... [as] her sister had a much fairer complexion"....

I'm just fed up with reading how Jade Goody is so racist whilst Indian people are supposed to be so non-discriminatory. They discriminate against each other on the basis of caste and skin shade and use a lot of skin lightening products to lighten their skin [source: I live in a area with an Asian majority and go into Indian shops on a regular basis and their shelves are stacked with the things and people have admitted they use them].

BTW I am an ethnic minority and am looking at this objectively rather than jumping on the "I hate Jade Goody bandwagon"..

I know that Indian people are racist in Indian as many of my Black friends have travelled there and had a very hard time and vowed never to return...

Answer 1

Indians are obsessed with light skin. The fairness cream industry is like 2 billion dollars. If you see most of the top actors and models on Indian televison and movies are light skinned compared to the general population. An African and European visiting India will be treated very differently , i assure you of that.

Answer 2

Somehow some people have gotten it into their heads that lighter skin tones are "better." There was a sketch on Saturday Night Live in the 1970s where Garrett Morris and another black man were discussing skin tone and the one with lighter skin was saying that black people with darker skin are in a lower class (or something like that). I didn't know until I saw that that even within a race, people see others as "lower" or "higher" than themselves. I realize it was only a comedy sketch, but it sort of made sense. Even with white people there is the term "white trash." I don't get what the fuss is about -- people are people. There are good and bad people of all races, cultures, and ethnicities -- I don't think that having a lighter or darker skin tone makes anyone better or worse than anyone else.

Aloha :)

Answer 3

Even if the shadow of an "untouchable" (dark-skinned/Dalit Christians) is cast upon a higher caste Indian (lighter-color), it is grounds for punishment, and they must go through a cleansing process. How obscure is that? Also the discrimination is based on religious difference as well, Hindu/Islam vs. Christianity.


Personally I am beginning to believe that people need to have a comparison, in order to recognize their own value.

How else would you know you are superior if you weren't comparing?

Although I don't understand the need to 'feel superior' that is much too prevalent across the globe, why can't people just be themselves and be happy with that, you know live and let live.

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Answer 4

Fairer one is, more beautiful they are in India. This does not mean that being white as in the west is beautiful. What they prefer is a lighter shade of brown. This is not racism. If one is outside in the sun, working they are likely to be tanned and dark. Whereas the well looked after ones who stay indoors or away from the sun [like the upper classes and people living in Kashmir], are more likely to be less tanned. All these beliefs is existent in the generation of Indians like Shilpa's mother. It is no longer true among the current generation. Current generation of young Indians do not give a toss about this. Unlike racists in the west, Indians do not slag off someone with painful personal remarks because they are dark. I am a darker shade of brown and very proud of it and have never been discriminated because of it.

Answer 5

I'm Indian, and I try to be as content as possible with my skin shade (I think it's accurate to say that my avatar's skin tone is almost the same as mine, maybe a little darker). My mother still complains that I could be fairer (as if i can do anything about it, although there is a "Fair and Lovely" creme that's supposed to make you fairer, but that's a load of crap). I don't know why people obsess over that, fairness is still regarded as a sign of beauty in India. It maybe an association with higher status, I don't know, I'm just thinking out loud.

The way I think about it though, the darker you are, the less likely you are to develop skin cancer. Yay melanin! :p

Answer 6

Yes you are right that indians discriminate on caste and prefer to be a lighter skin shade, but can you say that they explicitly are racist? Have they said anything to another person of another skin colour? As this only shows that they degrade themselves (me being indian myself) however this is not racism. No one said indian people dont discriminate people assume it. The reason people feel jade is a racist is bcos she had said insensitive stuff about shilpa in regards to her background and culture which gives enough reason for people to be against her as that is not right. This cant be compared to indians discriminating within their own culture, i mean other cultures do too i.e. chavs.

Answer 7

The sad thing is, we have western society to blame for that. Not only Indian people, but also African people have that problem. They all want lighter skin, to fit in. To fit into the western view of things. I suppose it has to do with mostly the colonisation of all those places by european people that left it's mark.

But in some cases I would say only two words; pot and kettle.

Answer 8

It's not just Indian people. Everyone is obsessed with skin color. White people want to be tan as filipino's want to have white skin. Everyone doesn't want their own skin color and will discrimate others who don't have what they consider beautiful. So, we just have to live life knowing we can't change people's backgrounds but we can change the way they think.

Answer 9

There is no one race that is obsessed with skin color.
The lightest shade of every race is the most coveted.
Why this is so has never been explained to me. If any
one knows the answer ... I hope you get it here.

Answer 10

I agree with you, as I am of mixed raced myself (1/2 Black and 1/2 English) And I never have had any issues about colour of skin, it is about the persons behaviour and attitude I don't like. It is also the same when you go into an Indian shop, how rude the assistant can be. They grab your money out of your hand and they never say thank you or please. (How rude is that)