Elle India’s December 2010’s cover features former Miss World and Bollywood actress dubbed “the most beautiful woman in the world” Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, but something is a little off about the photo. The actress’ skin appears a few shades lighter than in real life, and her hair is noticeably more red.
This comes on the heels of last year’s Elle scandal where American actress Gabourey Sidibeon (“Precious”) appeared much lighter than her beautiful ebony skin tone on the October 2010 issue of American Elle.
Elle responded to both allegations by stating that fashion cover shoots are done in studio lighting and that creates different images than photos taken in natural light by paparazzi. But regardless of the cause of the illusion (photo editing, studio lighting) the very fact that these images were picked for the cover says something about the unattainable state of beauty in the world today.
Not only are there racist implications to the type of beauty, that Elle is promoting but there are serious health issues as well. In 2002, CNN reported on skin whitening creams that are popular in Asian countries. Guess what the most common active ingredient is? Mercury, and sometimes it is at toxic levels. Millions of men and women across Asia are rubbing it on their skin to appear more attractive.
In India commercials for “Fair and Lovely” skin whitening cream depict ridiculous scenarios where a young ambitious person makes their dreams come true after they lighten their skins a few shades. Even L’Oreal Paris has a skin-whitening product marketed toward Asian women, “White Perfect.”
While the western world obsesses over tanning, naturally tanned and dark toned people want lighter skin. Perhaps in the same way that lighter skin in Asia signifies a higher class because you can afford to not toil all day in the sun, a natural-vacation-in-the sun-kissed-tan signifies wealth and freedom? Or maybe we are all just obsessed with the easiest way to change our appearance.
Losing weight takes work, orthodontia to have perfectly straight teeth takes time, a hair-free body takes maintenance but to get darker skin all you have to do is lay out in the sun. To whiten your skin, apparently all you need is a magical cream.
For people—women especially—the cover of a magazine already has countless ways to make them feel bad about themselves. Does the unattainable really sell so much that Elle needs to alter the appearance of a former Miss World?
Women of every color are already bombarded with skinny white models, skinny white actresses and skinny white pop-stars. If anything, Elle should celebrate beauty in all its forms because, right now, society’s opinion of “perfection” is still incredibly whitewashed and incredibly boring.
