White, Whiter and Whitest!

Beauty is only skin deep? Don’t judge a book by its cover? How many of these seemingly timeless adages have we heard? Well, you and I may be guilty of being drawn in by the ‘cover’ but if the contents are pure drivel, back on the shelf it goes. I think the same applies in all contexts including our people interactions!

Living in Los Angeles for twenty-five years, meant that the movie industry was literally at my doorstep, with my design work bringing me into close interactions with the glitterati at many levels. Initially the ‘shock and awe’ of seeing such unprecedented manifestations of human perfection up close slowly but surely waned to blasé acceptance that ‘this is what it is.’ Vanity was of course the strong under current, with the latest and greatest of treatments being constantly discussed, and friends showing off their best results. One key factor that stuck, and I mean literally like glue, was the obsession with healthy skin. Now here let me reiterate ‘healthy’ meaning that from the latest diet fads of the time, including the ‘raw’ movement, the ‘kale craze’ and macrobiotic, the results shone a spotlight on ‘inside out’ beauty and skin care. With many having their dermatologist on speed dial, ‘healthy skin’ meant that no matter what the skin color, their skin quality was the key factor. I knew folks of every complexion from porcelain to ebony who were simply glowing, which was also helped along by many elixirs that could and would cost as much as a compact car!

Years later and thousands of miles away, in beautiful Sri Lanka, I see a fast growing and sometimes unregulated rise in ‘fast track’ beauty. Where ‘healthy skin’ was and is the highlight with most international treatments and care ranges, locally we are seeing ‘White is right’ being the guiding factor for skin! Have we subliminally regressed in the form of scientific progress? 

The numerous beauty providers and practitioners have felt the pulse of the social set, and are catering to the insecurities of anyone who has taken the tale of ‘snow white’ a little too seriously. Offering everything that is tested and not, with the promises of becoming a whole other ethnicity, some in the beauty industry are setting a dangerous precedent in society. Does anyone recall the word genetics? We in Sri Lanka like any other nation, have skin tones that range from ‘egg shell’ to ‘deep taupe’ and despite sounding like paint chips, this is the reality of the resulting mélange created by our wonderful ethnicities that generationally may have taken many a twist and turn! What we seem to have now is a number of people wanting to work their hardest to alter their inherited skin tones to fit into a ridiculous mold set by the most vacant and vapid of the social set, and their followers! Individuality? Where art thou?

On the rarest of the rare occasions that I attend a social event, I am always in such admiration for People who make an effort to look their best no matter age, body type etc. what I also notice with some trepidation, are the number of ‘Casper the friendly ghost’ look a-likes parading about, one trying to out do the other in being the ‘whitest of the white’! Why? Have I missed the memo on some ‘secret award’ being handed out to those who alter their appearance the most, so as to resemble an embalmers masterpiece?

Another aspect that has sent these ‘whiter the better’ brigade into even more disturbing lows, is the many filters available on social media. Now being of the generation that does not know much about ‘gadgets and gizmos’ I am quite frightened by the people who have mastered the art of altering their pictures to the point of being cartoons! From ‘frightening whitening’ to re-shaping, blurring and highlighting their facial features, these ‘characters’ have gone beyond human boundaries and become living ‘avatars’ who could give James Cameron inspiration for the next installation of the movie!

Some in the social-set have certainly set the (sub)standard, along with the social media set whose claim to fame is purely a numbers game, with followers who would follow them right into a bucket of bleach! Some of these distressed damsels would promote poison if they were offered free products and maybe a few ‘strings attached’ dinners for good measure. From celluloid pseudo sensations to school kids, the obsessions seems to be growing dangerously, and there seems to be no ‘darkness’ at the end of the tunnel! Our own colonial background, where the conquerors and or rulers were white and thus the wish to emulate the ‘High and mighty’, along with the need to camouflage one’s shortcomings by acquiring ‘foreign hues’, could explain deep seeded historical intricacies that have ‘snow balled’ to where we are today. This of course is a whole psychological area that would be another discussion entirely!

Having been a fan of sun block since the age of 15, when sunblock’s were pasty potions that had to be sloughed off, I still indulge in a high SPF and suffering from super sun sensitivity avoid the sun as much as possible. My Niece Tehani has heard the broken record of me saying, “did you apply your sunblock” over and over since the time she was watching ‘Barbie’s twelve dancing Princesses!’ I have also said the same to anyone in ear shot! Eating wonderful food, exercise, methodology for less stress, and the best possible self care is to be always applauded. Leave the caricatures to the sketch artists and the ‘white out’ for describing snowy weather. Embrace the fact that like our unique individual fingerprints, our features too, including ‘skin tone’, should be embraced with pride. Leave the CGI to the movies, and let us make the best of our time ‘being human’ on this journey of life, not a paler variant version for social pages, but our best ‘being real human.’