Anisha woke up with a flurry of excitement - after all,
this was the day for she had been practicing for the last few weeks!
Today was the audition for class 4 students and the best of them would
be chosen to play the role of Mother Mary - a privilege, her mom told
her!
She was one of the first to reach the venue in her pearly white costume. Despite the butterflies in her stomach, she mouthed the lines with perfect diction and drama just as she had practiced it! Anisha hopped and skipped her way back to class sure that she had the role in her bag!
Next day after school assembly, the class teacher assembled the entire class to declare the results of the audition! Anisha fought her tears as the teacher announced that her arch-rival Nisha was chosen to be the Mother Mary - simply cause she was the "fair beauty with the chiseled face" - just perfect to play the coveted role! Anisha along with other dark-skinned girls of her class were chosen to play the motley role of a shepherd!
Thus at the tender age of eight, Anisha had her her first encounter with discrimination based on color - a uphill battle she had to struggle against all through her life!
While this is a fictitious story, this could be the story of many a dark skinned girl in India! This is so ingrained in most of us, that a jibe on our color is simply laughed off! I should admit that I am equally guilty of ribbing my sister many a times about her darker skin tone. I did not even realize that am violating a very basic human right.....
I am glad that "Dark is beautiful" campaign is making waves and maybe in the next generation, a little girl's self esteem isn't based on her skin colour alone! Maybe she will realise that her "Dark Brown Chocolate" colour is as delicious (if not more) as her "Fairy White" companions!
I am participating in Blog Action Day. Blog Action Day is a free annual event, that is organised since 2007. Its aim is to unite the bloggers from all over the world, by posting about the same issue, on the same day, in order to raise awareness and trigger a positive global discussion around an important issue that impacts us all. Around 1, 717 blogs from 124 countries, across 26 languages have registered to take part in Blog Action Day 2013. This year, the focus is on Human Rights.
She was one of the first to reach the venue in her pearly white costume. Despite the butterflies in her stomach, she mouthed the lines with perfect diction and drama just as she had practiced it! Anisha hopped and skipped her way back to class sure that she had the role in her bag!
Next day after school assembly, the class teacher assembled the entire class to declare the results of the audition! Anisha fought her tears as the teacher announced that her arch-rival Nisha was chosen to be the Mother Mary - simply cause she was the "fair beauty with the chiseled face" - just perfect to play the coveted role! Anisha along with other dark-skinned girls of her class were chosen to play the motley role of a shepherd!
Thus at the tender age of eight, Anisha had her her first encounter with discrimination based on color - a uphill battle she had to struggle against all through her life!
While this is a fictitious story, this could be the story of many a dark skinned girl in India! This is so ingrained in most of us, that a jibe on our color is simply laughed off! I should admit that I am equally guilty of ribbing my sister many a times about her darker skin tone. I did not even realize that am violating a very basic human right.....
I am glad that "Dark is beautiful" campaign is making waves and maybe in the next generation, a little girl's self esteem isn't based on her skin colour alone! Maybe she will realise that her "Dark Brown Chocolate" colour is as delicious (if not more) as her "Fairy White" companions!
I am participating in Blog Action Day. Blog Action Day is a free annual event, that is organised since 2007. Its aim is to unite the bloggers from all over the world, by posting about the same issue, on the same day, in order to raise awareness and trigger a positive global discussion around an important issue that impacts us all. Around 1, 717 blogs from 124 countries, across 26 languages have registered to take part in Blog Action Day 2013. This year, the focus is on Human Rights.
We have to defend the dark as beautiful is a misery. A campaign like this has to come out is a sorry. Those fair and lowlies ads just add the misery everyday.
ReplyDeleteAt times I feel as we get more modernised the concept of fairer girls are gaining more strength. Even in the eyes of lil boys of 9th class or 10, the fairer is beautiful and they just ignore even the friendship of the dusk-ier ones....
ReplyDeleteGood that you wrote on it. My personal belief is that such ads are sure to build confidence among people who feel let down by nature for their dark skin. Appreciate your skin color and look like yourself is what this ad conveys.
ReplyDeleteUnconsciously we take part in many a violation, could be the silliest of things to say, but it is.. but when the media too gets to popularize it.. have you heard this line, when anybody from a kid to an adult is concentrating on their studies, somebody will walk in and say, "oh! come on you are not preparing for the IAS exam!" it has become so common place right, we all need to be attentive and take a little more care ... good one Mins!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately its the ladies (mothers and mother-in-laws) who propagate this preference for fair skin.
ReplyDeleteYes, discrimination based on colour is rampant in India - I wonder how we acquired that...Sometimes we jest about it without realizing the significance of our words! Great post, Meens.
ReplyDeleteInspiring story. This discrimination is built in our psyche. Why just us, even in other countries it is rampant. We gotta a huge body of work to do to get rid of such mindset to bring change in society. I wanna read the book by Nandita and it's a novel way to be the change.
ReplyDeleteVishal