Why Are Women Expected To Look Flawless And Fair?

When I was a child, even one spot on the skin was like a tragedy to my mom. She would ask me to apply various concoctions to make that one spot disappear. Her extent to make me look flawless went too far when she got one of my moles on the cheekbone removed by UV rays. I liked that mole. But my mother saw it only as a “dhabba” on my face. Thankfully, her attempt was not successful as the mole came back into my life. But the question that remains is why are women forced to look flawless? Why can’t women’s faces be accepted the way they are?

Recently, Influencer Kusha Kapila opened up about her journey with adult acne. She posted pictures of her face filled with acne and shared how painful and troubling they are. While adult acne is indeed painful, Kapila deserves a cheer for not shying away from talking about her face with flaws. She delivered a message to several women around that it is okay to have spots on faces, even celebrities have it. That it is okay to not hide them under make-up or be ashamed of them.

On the contrary, women in our society are forced to hide their blemishes to masquerade as a face that is gifted with beauty (society’s narrowed standards of beauty). Television commercials only talk about how a woman can look flawless by applying various creams. A spot on a women’s face is made to decide her future - her education, career and her marriage prospects. A woman with a spot on her face is bullied in her school and college to an extent that she starts hating her face. When it comes to career, many sectors fish for women with flawless beauty. Let's look at Bollywood, will any moviemaker cast a woman who has spots on her face or is dark-skinned as the main lead? No. They are ready to fashion the spot and brown face the fair-skinned women when the movie needs it. But they are just not ready to hire women who carry the spots and dark skin that they want to be vocal about through their films.

Then comes the marriage prospect. Many matrimonial ads promote the idea of seeking a bride with flawless fair beauty. Even in the marriage meetings, grooms and their families reject women for their spot on the skin. Why are people obsessed with the beauty which is a transient thing? Why don’t people understand that not beauty but the woman’s individuality and morality will remain throughout her life?

Moreover, this obsession with flawless beauty is burdened on women only. Men are not expected to look beautiful or flawless. Their beauty is counted by the zeroes they have in their salaries. But why don’t we do that for women? Why don’t we look beyond a woman’s face and see her talents, success and achievements? No one tries to imagine that it is okay for a woman to live with spots on her face. That a single spot on her face cannot blotch her entire life.

 Kusha Kapila On Adult Acne

Let us accept that pimples, moles, acne or " target="_blank" rel="noopener">dark skin are natural. They do not get to define what kind of life a woman is going to live. If a famous woman like Kusha Kapila can live with acnes, why can’t common women too? Moreover, more than a woman’s skin, her opinions, freedom and success matter.

The views expressed are the author's own.