Goa's Beauty Contest: Miss Natural
Skin whitening and skin lightening creams are extremely popular in India, and Goa in this way is a part and parcel of the country. India is undoubtably two countries geographically, and consequentially aesthetically, too. In the north there are four distinct seasons unlike in the south where we have a lot of sun and rain. The sub-continent is also racially made up of two countries, Aryans and Dravidians. Since melanin is necessary for human beings to fight against strong sunshine, it is not at all surprising to see the majority of people have a dark skin complexion. Unlike in the south, the majority of the people in the north of the country are fair, especially in the Punjab, Kashmir and so on as their blood is mixed with that of people beyond our political borders which is indeed cold if not very cold. As is well known, Alexander the Great visited India 2500 years ago and some of his soldiers married local women and settled down in the Punjab. Much later, people of mixed heritage were born in British India and Portuguese Goa, some of whom have a fair complexion although they are less visible nowadays. The dominant imagery of popular Indian culture nowadays is north dominating south. Models and movie stars, by and large, are fair if not vey fair. Rarely do we see an Indian in the limelight who has dark skin. Unlike in the USA where there was a conscious color movement where Afro-Americans loudly proclaimed 'Black is Beautiful' there has not been a similar movement in our country. A lot of dark skin Indians dream of having a light skin or fair complexion. Is dark skin beautiful in India? Consumer images come in packages. Miss World and Miss India contests showcase a majority of winners who have fair skin. I'd better at this point mention Reita Faria, the first Asian, Indian and Goan to win the Miss World pageant in 1966. I do so as a safety precaution, not wanting a diehard Goan to start screaming virtually at me louder than the high decibel music we hear at the electronic music festivals. One, two, three or more people are still the exception to the rule - a very small percentage indeed. When we compare dark and fair skin people there is a big gap in the aesthetics, as big as the seasons in the north and south of India. A lot of the haute couture clothes and jewelry are designed for fair skin people and on dark skin people look terrible! The same goes for make-up. People with dark skin need to reject this package of fashion and make-up and create an aesthetics of their own which is free of the dominant ideology. How often have I seen make-up on dark skin which does not go well; a lot of women appear as though they are working in bakeries. Dark skin does not need the same kind of make-up required for fair skin people. It is time for people, especially women from the south of India to create a new package of aesthetic values which will proclaim 'Brown is Beautiful'. Goa's Miss Natural can demolish the until now dominant white skin aesthetics of the north and its hold on the women who live in the south of India. What they have been doing is natural for the people of the north but is not suitable for most of the women in the south. We need a lot of new products for women with a dark complexion. We need commercial support for a new beauty contest - Goa's Miss Natural. The established companies will not be interested in this project as they are quite happy with the status quo as it brings in the moolah. Why upset the apple cart? New venture companies and manufacturers of ayurvedic products, ethnic jewelry, and natural clothing materials are more likely to support this idea. If successful, it will revolutionize the fashion and make-up industry in the south of India and change the way we think of fashion and beauty, as well as opening up massive new markets. Maybe Miss Natural one day will walk down the aisle wearing make-up and clothes made of natural materials only which are suitable for a woman with a dusky complexion. All she needs to add to her beauty is pure water from Goa's Dudhsagar's waterfall. Are there any young, middle age or even old business adventurers willing to challenge the status quo and sponsor a beauty contest for Goa's Miss Natural?
