Indian Vogue takes on color prejudice

“Every generation has its share of beauty myths. Perhaps it is time to bust this one,” the editorial says. “Time to say that as a magazine we love, and always have loved, the gorgeous colour of Indian skin…dark, dusky, bronze, golden – whatever you call it, we love it.”
Fuelled by the appearance of light-skinned Bollywood stars and models, the demand for skin-whitening creams – from brands including L’Oreal and Unilever - grew 18 per cent last year and is set to increase by a predicted 25 per cent this year, the Times reports. The Vogue cover has been praised by the country’s fashion insiders for addressing the issue in a positive way. (Emphasis mine)

I think it’s worth repeating that Unilever – owner of Dove and their “real beauty” campaign – is one of the biggest suppliers of skin lightening cream out there and are responsible for ads like this:

(No translation or transcript available)
This issue of Vogue is being lauded as a positive first step. Nirupama Singh, an expert in the sociology of fashion says, “Skin color matters a lot for women in India…Fairness is a very valuable thing here, looked on as desirable. The fashion world can be a big agent for change in this area.”
Via The Cut.
Related Posts: Colorism on the Rise
Sexist/Racist Ad Watch: Skin Whitening Edition
Internalized colonization, beauty and Sudan.