Richa Chadha shared this photo. (Image courtesy: therichachadha)
Strong points
- It took me many years of unlearning to gain confidence: Richa
- We have to define our own idea of beauty, says Richa Chadha
- Nandita Das and Abhay Deol also welcomed the brand’s decision
New Delhi:
Actress Richa Chadha praised Hindustan Unilever’s decision to rename their product and remove “Fair” from “Fair & Lovely” on Friday and added that it should also change mentalities. “I welcome this decision by the brand … and it is not easy … I hope that mentalities will change slowly and steadily,” she wrote on Instagram. Richa Chadha accompanied the publication with a photo of her wearing a t-shirt that said “Not fair but charming”, which she printed in 2015. She said: “We have been told since we were children, that equity is the only definition of beauty. It is also another unfortunate by-product of colonialism and casteism! But we are in 2020 and many BS are dismantling! It took me many years of unlearning to gain confidence and start loving my complexion. “
Supporting the brand to rename their product, Richa also said: “Yesterday, the brand and I finally agreed! Yesterday, they removed the word “Fair” from its product name… Before attacking the brand to pay only “lip service”, remember, it takes several generations for ideas to change. There is a demand and therefore a supply … We must continuously and without any influence from the West, define our own idea of beauty. Beauty must be inclusive! Well done.”
Read Richa Chadha’s post here:
“NOT FAIR BUT BEAUTIFULLY”, I had it printed on a T-shirt in 2015. Yesterday, the brand @fairandlovely_id and I finally agreed! Yesterday, they dropped the word FAIR from their product name … Before attacking the brand to pay only “lip service”, remember, it takes several generations for ideas to change. There is a demand and therefore a supply … We have been told since our childhood that equity is the only definition of beauty! It is also another unfortunate by-product of colonialism and casteism! But it’s 2020, and a lot of BS are dismantling! It took me many years of unlearning to gain confidence and start LOVING my complexion! Der aye durust aye, I say. I welcome this decision by the brand … and it is not easy … brands have a thousand meetings before even changing the POLICE in their logo … I hope that mentalities change slowly and regularly … we must continuously and without any influence from the West, define our own idea of beauty. Beauty must be inclusive! Bravo @fairandlovely_id #NotFairButLovely #RacismIsAVirus #RichaChadha #richareccomends #Truth #lockdown #selfhate #postcolonial #actorslife #fairandlovely
The actors Nandita Das and Abhay Deol, who longtime criticized fairness cream celebrities, also welcomed the brand’s decision to rename the product. Actress Bipasha Basu has talked about her personal experience of skin color bias over the years, in the wake of the renaming of products “Fair & Lovely” by Hindustan Unilever.
