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= South Asia = The idea of beauty standards in South Asia has had a long history with fair skin tone. The normative societal expectation of Beauty of people has been associated with the gradient of their Skin colour. The fairer you become, the more Attractive you are. Fairness is also a tool of Belongingness and Social acceptance within the dominant society. Whiteness is the most ideal beauty standard of coloured women in South Asia.

Historical evidence of the socially accepted fair skinned superior
South Asia was ruled by the Mughals and the Britishers. Along with the impact of globalization and influence of Hollywood, it made the society believe that fairness was associated with success and superiority. In earlier Hollywood movies, people with dark skin tone were not given a lead role but instead were chosen to play Villain or subordinate roles. This melanin power dynamic caused a rift and discrimination among people solely based on their skin colour.

Even before the Britishers came and ruled all over South Asia, the Indian subcontinent was also ruled by a long list of fair skinned rulers which included people from Arab and Mughals who had a lighter skin tone than majority of Indians. The origins of fair skin colour as an appropriate beauty ideal originated from deeply ingrained sociocultural biases such as class differences that date back to colonial times. The post colonial impact after the 'British Raj' was tremendous on the impressionable minds of the people of South Asia. Physical characteristics like lighter skin tone was glorified and deemed to be a crucial instrument of social status and power. Skin colour played a significant role in labelling people based on the caste system. People in the upper caste system were associated with light skin whereas lower caste people were identified as 'dark skin'. South Asian beauty norm quickly absorbed the idea of correlation between increased social acceptance with decreased melanin.

Beauty defined by Advertisements
Advertising is driving several definitions of beauty around the world today where an ideal woman is depicted tall, thin and white. Models often set a standard of beauty for audiences by endorsing various products and displaying perfect portions of their bodies. Hyper commercialized facial products like fair and handsome and fair and lovely were in trend in the South Asian society until very recently. For women, products like fair & lovely was not only a marker of social acceptance but also an emotional strength making them 'happy and confident'. Multi-billion-dollar skin lightening products have grown throughout the world in part of because of colourism, as millions of people of colour most of whom are women purchase and use products intended to permanently lighten their skin. Skin whitening products are also known as skin bleaching products and they come in creams, gels, and lotions that are directly applied to the skin. According to estimates, the market size for 'fairness' creams and lotions in India is about $450 million USD, a growth rate of 15 to 20% is reported each year for 'fairness' products.

Similarly, the pattern of fair skin obsession has percolated as a desirable quality for South Asian Men. For instance, Skin whitening products has been established as a marker of Masculinity and deemed as a desirable beauty standard for men in West Nepal.

Women who already face oppression because of their gender encounter another obstacle in the way of their progress where fairness is seen as key to success. There is a strong association between being fair and being beautiful in India, and white skin is often seen as an obsession; making fairness as the epitome of acceptable physical feature. Simultaneously, women with a dark skin tone are constantly exposed to ideas such as 'dark is ugly' which makes them a great 'significant burden' on their families.

Fairness ideal among young women
The portrayal of dark-skinned women across media promising a lighter skin tone with the use of fairness products gained a lot of attention. 'Fairer' skin is viewed as a beauty aesthetic ideal disproportionately targeted at women of colour. The skin colour of many young females is perceived as an obstacle to social mobility. The preference for lighter skin tones has been perpetrated by exposure to idealized images conveyed in visual media, as well as through discriminatory practices that favour lighter skin tones. In India, it is a common belief that fair skin and beauty go hand in hand, leading to successful marriages and successful careers, while darker skinned Indian girls are shamed and compared to their lighter skinned peers.

Many South Asian families face insecurities around the fact when they have a darker skinned daughter compared to themselves. That is when they tend to refer their child as having a 'wheatish skin complexion' when society labels them as 'dark skinned'. This is a common term to refer South Asian women for brown skin and it also tends to satisfy the social insecurities of the parents. There are many traditional ideas which are referred as 'grandma sayings of fairness home remedies' which are still prevalent in the South Asian community. These practices consist of using mixture of gram flour and turmeric powder to lighten one's skin tone. Such ideas bring a lot of discomfort and self-confidence doubts among young women. Nonetheless, these ideas have also promoted the use of fairness creams. Many regions in South Asia still believe in the practices of arranged marriage and women who are dark skinned face higher rejection. In terms of marriage, choices and life outcomes, fair skinned women are in a better position than those with darker complexions, since light skin is traded for a less expensive dowry.

Fairness ideal among young men
No matter how often we use the phrase 'tall, dark, and handsome' as desirable characteristics for a man, we almost always look for a partner with a lighter skin tone. The phrase 'tall, dark, and handsome' remains inapplicable instead it becomes 'tall, fair, and handsome'. In South Asia, India's Bollywood cinema has made an important contribution to embodied masculinity by depicting certain images of the human body in various ways. Skin whitening products like 'fair and lovely' which was introdued for women gave rise to marketing companies to launch a new product line 'fair and handsome' for men. There were advertisements for the products all throughout the region of Nepal and using Bollywood stars to promote them seemed like an effective marketing technique. Young people tend to fall into the trap of such marketing tactics which further promotes the use of such products. Simultaneously, these products create idealized expectations for young men as per media beauty standards.