In what ways can South Asian media challenge the long-standing obsession with fair skin, thin bodies, and Eurocentric beauty standards?

Let’s talk about the unspoken rule in South Asian media: if you’re not fair, thin, and Eurocentric-looking… you’re not “main character” material.

Whether it’s Bollywood, Tollywood, or even mainstream TV serials, beauty is boxed into one rigid aesthetic — and if you fall outside it, you’re either erased or expected to work ten times harder to be seen.

And the worst part? We’ve all felt it.

That One Scene That Stuck With Me

When Baar Baar Dekho dropped in 2016, it wasn’t just the time-travel storyline people talked about — it was Katrina Kaif’s abs. “Dream body,” they called it. “Perfect figure.” My Instagram was flooded with screenshots of her workout routine, her bikini scene, and captions like “#Goals.”

But all I remember is feeling fat.

I looked in the mirror and wondered why I didn’t look like that. Why my stomach didn’t have abs, why I couldn’t wear low-rise jeans without crying, why no matter what I did — I never looked like her.

And it didn’t end there. Because it wasn’t just Katrina. It was Tamannaah, Amy Jackson, Jacqueline Fernandez, Nora Fatehi — women praised over and over again, not just for their talent, but for how “fair,” “exotic,” and “foreign” they looked.

South Asian media made it crystal clear: if you want to be desirable, you better look as non-South Asian as possible.

The Eurocentric Obsession — And Its Very Real Damage

Let’s unpack this.

Amy Jackson, a white British actress, was cast in lead roles in multiple South Indian films, despite not speaking the language, not being culturally rooted in the space, and looking nothing like the local audience — simply because she fit the “fair = beautiful” narrative.
Katrina Kaif, half British, has built a wildly successful career where her accent and foreign looks are part of her “charm” — while darker-skinned, brown Desi women have to claw their way up for half the attention.
Tamannaah, known for her extremely fair skin, is frequently placed on a pedestal of beauty, often in contrast to darker-skinned actresses in supporting roles.

And Indian media? It eats it up.

These casting decisions aren’t just about talent — they reflect a deep-rooted colonial hangover that still tells Desi girls that whiteness, thinness, and Western features are more beautiful, more marketable, more worthy.

How It Messes With Our Heads

You internalize the idea that your natural skin tone is a flaw.
You start skipping meals to chase someone else’s bone structure.
You believe you’re less worthy of love, jobs, respect — just because you don’t look like the poster girl for a fairness cream ad.
You start to hate yourself for being authentically South Asian.

And when Indian men grow up watching these actresses being constantly glorified, they start to expect that too. Suddenly, if you’re not fair or skinny, you’re “not their type.” You’re “just a friend.” You’re “ruining their dream girl fantasy.”

But their dream was never built around women like us. It was built on a lie media fed them.

So What Can South Asian Media Actually Do to Change This?

It’s not enough to say we support inclusivity. The media industry needs to actively unlearn its Eurocentric bias. Here’s how:

1. Cast Real South Asian Women as Leads — Not Just Tokens

Stop sidelining darker-skinned, broader-bodied, or non-Eurocentric Desi women. Put them in main roles — not just as “the friend,” the comic relief, or the sidekick. Let them fall in love, be the heartthrob, the CEO, the dream girl.

2. Stop Color Correcting and Skin-Lightening in Post

Yes, we see it. You lighten actresses’ skin in posters and scenes. Stop it. Our melanin isn’t a mistake.

3. Hire Storytellers Who Reflect the Reality

Get South Asian women behind the camera — especially those who’ve lived these experiences. Let them write their stories, their pain, their joy. Authenticity won’t come from a boardroom of disconnected men.

4. End Fairness Cream Ads and “Glow Up” Tropes

There’s nothing empowering about “becoming beautiful” by becoming fairer or thinner. We’ve had enough of that storyline. Give us characters who love themselves as they are.

5. Showcase Diverse Love Stories

Let’s see a dark-skinned girl being desired. A curvy girl being loved unapologetically. A brown-skinned woman being wanted without a “but” attached to it.

For Every Girl Who Ever Felt Like She Wasn’t Enough

To the girls who were told to stay out of the sun, to lose weight before marriage, to straighten their hair to look more “presentable” — you were never the problem.

To the girls who looked at Katrina’s abs in 2016 and felt small — I see you. I was you.

South Asian media has lied to us for decades, telling us we have to erase our features to be beautiful.

But the truth is: we were always enough. And now it’s time they start writing stories like that.