People like Surya are supposed to be new generation actors, educated etc. He can make millions with many different ads, and he can choose which ones to participate. But even he is endorsing these products. Are people ready to boycott his movies because he is showing poor judgement in these matters? We can write things online, but then nothing will happen as long as we support the people who support these products. We can say 'ban' in an online site. But as long as the influential folks in media endorse these things, who will ban it? They'll just continue their attempt to keep peeps brainwashed on color. All you can do in reality is educate your kids about these things and know that bias may still be there in the world.
You are taking things too far and being very assumptive.I do not want to get onto one-on-one pick up.But Let me make it clear. All I can say is F&L AD is as disgusting a Microsoft AD which was banned(I am sure many of us know that AD).And I am totally against the new AD which has come now.I am not sure how many have seen it. If you remember the Hamam AD which invoked controversy (mom chasing the girl who goes to buy soap and says if she buys soap other than Hamam she will have pimples ,scars and she will loose confidence) is not coming anymore since lot of people were against it.Why can't the same be done to this AD too? Media should also have some responsibility.
That is where the problem lies. The average Indian isn't comfortable in his skin. It's been ingrained in us since we were kids that being lighter will take us miles ahead in life. This problem wouldn't arise if we actually didn't give two hoots. The Indian media or even the global media for that matter is a very powerful force. It'll take a lot more than debating online to ban F&L ads. They are pretty big in India and I am very sure the only reason they survive is because they have made enough money to be able to buy their way through their faults.(I am pretty certain there's Red Tape-ism) So, unless this thread goes viral and somehow gets noticed, it's a tough proposition. At best, we can teach your children to be strong and not feel let down the next time someone calls them dark. As mothers and fathers, we should teach our kids to look at themselves, the way we look at them.
Educating children is a very good thing. I also think we should try and not buy these so called fairness creams for our own use and never buy them for our children. If for example a teen daughter / son asks for it, I would make them realise the beauty in their own skin colour; instead of buying it for them.
Just google on fairness creams, and you will understand that most of the products are from india endorsed by indian celebrity.. fairness creams - Google Search The stupid Fairness creams rules the roost. the best bets today. HUL could not take the heat from other companies like emami, cavin kare well i am not going to list the products here, that they revamped the whole F&L into a wider range..and interestingly F&L rules the roost in rural areas. a study in 2006 i think showed that in the FMCG sector, fairness creams contribute to around 800 to 1000 crores. that is around 75% share to F& L and 15 to fairever, and they are spreading wings to africa.... the celebrities do it for the moolah, if you are waiting for them to stop endorsing, it is not going to happen. if x stops there will always be a y..(though i don't like her, i appreciate Aishwarya for not succumbing to endorse fairness products, inspite of being offered a huge amount by a player) we did have a few dusky actresses. i stll remember one particular dark actress who used be in full war paint when co-starring kamal (i am sure you all know). well what to say about the fanatic obsession with fairness and the zero size. I believe change should come from within. i am dark. there had been some comparisons, *** comments from my classmates, colleagues at times..though i am talking about 17/20 years backwards..and there are certain spread of people (i don't want to spark off some controversy with naming any) who are so obsessed with the color. i am married to a person who is fairer than me. i still remember when my son was born, people commenting, it is ok, he is a male, thankgod the daughter is fair. i told them whatever the color, he is my son and i am happy that he is healthy. fast forward 4 years, the kiddo goes to school in a middle eastern country, where most of his classmates are fairer and he gets ridiculed for being dark. he came home, crying and said he will not go to school until i got him some medicine to make him fair. i was worried..but i told him that it is what you are that is special, and that there will always be a curiosity towards what if, but believe me that it is better to accept what you are and be happy and work around it rather than running towards things that are not possible. ofcourse i told him in a simple way. and also told him to retort back that he was fair where it mattered. and till date he has never had any problems..with more exposure to the sun, and with age he has grown darker..he is 13 but he has never asked us for a fairness cream. Maybe there should be a proactive way of reaching the masses that whatever the skin color, women/men are beautiful. On a lighter note here is something i like to share.. a food for thought... Comic on Fairness Creams, skin lightening products | Indian comics about life and irritations.
before i sign off for the day, i wish there was a regulatory body for stringent controls on these whitening and bleaching agents.. there are so many untold, unheard stories of side affects.. remember a lady succumbing to vicks action 500 i think and there after there is always a small print that states use as prescribed.. most of the whitening creams have certain chemicals that are too harmful..and now i hear the ones in the men's creams are more harsher... fairness at what cost is what i wonder..
Unfortunately, the Indian cosmetics industry isn't as regulated as it should be. Even if it were to be regulated, there's a lot of bureaucracy and red tape-ism that needs to be overcome. I went through what your son experienced when I was a kid. Even though my mother used the exact same words on me, I wasn't convinced. It was only after I tried F&L as a 13 year old and had rashes on my face due to F&L,did I start loving my skin and color the way it is.
Educating our kids that beauty is NOT just skin deep is a great idea. As parents it’s our responsibility too. But I doubt if this ALONE can counter the media influence (ads) and the societal pressures. How many of us seriously listened to what our parents had to say when we were growing up! Especially when we were teens! Values and virtues may be imparted to kids by parents. But how you perceive your “looks” is more influenced by the society. Ads and occasional stray comments from friends and relatives will have more impact. Don't you think? So what can we do? When organizations can become the voice of voiceless animals…we can do much more to voice our protest against this mayhem. First and foremost likeminded people like us should come together. One Google search on “Fairness Cream India” shows at least a hundred (Okay… I didn’t count…but I am sure there are a hundred : ) ) blogs and articles on this topic. And yes…one Facebook page (that I haven’t yet looked). How about all these bloggers and authors come under one umbrella? As one of the posts here showed…it all comes down to money for the cosmetic companies. They spend tons of money on ads which in turn generates lots of revenues. We might not be able to air ads in the media as they do…but can make this umbrella organization as visible as say PETA and put out at least a google ad? How about a twitter account? See I am just thinking aloud here...so don’t shoot me! : ) And coming to the celebrities that endorse these products – Yep…there is no point in banning a particular actor for being part of these ads. As we all know…its all about money. I don’t blame them! BUT public perception….particularly the opinions of their fans is important for them…Right? All these actors are very active in the online social media. If not a website…they might at least have a facebook page. How about registering our protest there? There are a few actors who are also social activists. Why not reach out to them? I think there are a number of things we can do….if only we put our minds together. K.
I am game about starting a Facebook page. I have quite a few people who would readily join the protest. And maybe, someday, we would achieve our goal. But what we need to do first is spread the message within Indusladies, which is where I saw the thread about coolly using fairness creams to become fair and it provoked such a reaction from me. And to make matters worse, I just checked Fair and Lovely on my FB and here's what came up http://www.facebook.com/fairandlovelyindia With close to 14000+ people LIKING it. Also, there is a FB page wanting to Ban Fair And Lovely http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=5330233692&v=wall
I think there is already a FB page. I haven't looked at it though. I like the idea of spread the word in IL. Do you think we should request a group/sub-group specific to this topic? K
