I couldn’t believe my eyes when my maid’s 10-year old daughter nagging her to buy her gora karnay wali cream. Can you believe it? Just a 10-year old toddler is so worried about her complexion. I asked her what is her daughter talking about? And then she told whole story to me in detail. As you know, maids these days have all asaishain therefore of no wonder she has a small TV in her home that her daughter watches all day long. She saw this ad on TV that shows a certain cream that makes you “khoobsorat” according to her within 14 days (guaranteed). I asked her how she was so sure about its results? She said she saw it too on TV where a kaali girl turns into “goori” after using this cream within a few days. I asked her what if it is not true and her complexion gets worse? She gave me a terrible look and said “nai baji! aisa hota tu ye tv wali larki itni gori kaisay hoti? Bohat achi careem hay ye, rung bilkul saaf kar dayti hay”. I being in ultimate shock got up and left that conversation.
It was shocking enough for me to see the way these TV ads are influencing innocent people. It is not so surprising though, obviously these large hoardings on almost every street with sleek models showing off their long thick and shiny hair and “gora” complexion can make anyone go crazy enough to invest in such beauty products. Can’t we just be comfortable in our own skins? Why is it getting too necessary for every other girl to look as beautiful as a TV model? I don’t understand why do they even think they are not beautiful the way they are? (Seems too confusing to me :/) and by the way who even declare them beautiful? (Oh! Dang “the boys”) so this is what we are too busy doing that we have completely forgotten our responsibilities to our families and this nation. After worrying too much about self-beauty regimes, who gets enough time to work on mental beauty? (No one).
I don’t remember my mother or my nani getting worried about themselves like this ever. They were more concerned about other things in life that were more important for them and their families and it was to groom their mindsets. Now I know why we are not progressing, because they have put us on a blind path of “beauty phenomenon” and we are very obediently following it. We are becoming the people of inferiority complexes, who are not just uncomfortable of their language but now their complexions too.
Firstly, I thought it is just a matter of language that bother us, we don’t like reading much of urdu context (even if we do, we mostly don’t mention it in our social circles the way we do English contexts), we feel good when someone points out a mistake in our urdu, zahir hay that automatically means my angraizi is good (RIP: common sense). We get impressed when someone having no IQ speaks fluent angraizi (so what if he doesn’t know our chief minister’s name? he speak better English than him afterall). They say beauty without brain is useless, well! This really works here in my country.
Not because everyone over here is distracted (na na!) it is just that we have forgotten our values. But you see, the story doesn’t end here… we have gone to an extent now. We are choosing to have perfect looks than to have perfect souls. Unfortunate, isn’t it? Thanks to TV ads and sizzling models on the street hoarding to empty our brains and overfill our desires to look beautiful. GOD helps us! I don’t think a nation comprising of sleek women with beautiful skins can conquer the world but I am sure it can if it starts working on its intellect. We really need to get out of this jubilation, there is a lot else to worry about. We should learn this from mothers of other nations who put all their efforts in bringing up their child, to make him learn how to serve for his country, educate him and herself to be a better human being.
Neither TV ads nor hoarding but reality says education, honesty, respect and hard work are the most reliable products with 100% guarantee to make you the most beautiful woman of this world.
Written by:
Atia Mahmood
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