What is Cosmetics?

Cosmetics are substances or products used to enhance or alter the appearance of the face
or fragrance and texture of the body. Many cosmetics are designed for use of applying to the
face, hair, and body. They are generally mixtures of chemical compounds; some being derived
from natural sources (such as coconut oil),

History of Cosmetics

The history of cosmetics spans at least 7,000 years and is present in almost every society on
earth. evidence of cosmetics certainly dates from ancient Egypt. According to one source, early
major developments include the use of castor oil in ancient Egypt as a protective balm and skin
creams made of beeswax, olive oil and rosewater described by the romans.
During the early 1900s, makeup was not excessively popular. In fact, women hardly wore
makeup at all. in 1965.
Around 1910, make-up became fashionable in the United States of America and Europe owing to
the influence of ballet. Colored makeup was introduced in Paris upon the arrival of the Russian
Ballet in 1910, where ochers and crimsons were the most typical shades. The Daily Mirror
beauty book showed that cosmetics were now acceptable for the literate classes to wear. In the
1920s, the movie industry in Hollywood had the most influential impact on cosmetics. Stars such
as Bara had a substantial effect on the makeup industry. Helena Rubinstein was Bara’s
makeup artist; she created mascara for the actress, relying on her experiments with kohl. Others
who saw the opportunity for the mass-market of cosmetics during this time were Max Factor.
During the 1920s numerous African Americans participated in skin bleaching in an attempt to
lighten their complexion as well as hair straightening to appear whiter. Skin bleaches and hair
straighteners created fortunes worth millions and accounted for a massive thirty to fifty percent
of all advertisements in the black press of the decade.[33] Oftentimes, these bleaches and
straighteners were created and marketed by African American women themselves.
IN 21st century Beauty products are now widely available from dedicated internet-only
retailers, who have more recently been joined online by established outlets, including the major
department stores and traditional bricks and mortar beauty retailers.

Makeup Through the Years

It may seem like using cosmetics is a recent thing that only women tend to obsess over for
beauty purposes, but the history of makeup tells us different. In fact, using makeup and
cosmetics have been a practice in nearly every culture, and has been important to people for
nearly 6,000 years.

The Early Years

When you think of the word “cosmetics” or “makeup,” you may instantly think of a woman
applying foundation, blush, eye liner, mascara and lipstick. But cosmetics can be so much more.

Cosmetics uses;
People in places such as ancient Egypt and other places in Africa were known to use cosmetics
for healing purposes. They chewed specific herbs and plants such as frankincense to freshen their
breath. Mixtures and ointments were created from plants and oils to rub on burns, to diminish the
appearance of scars and even wrinkles.

It has been documented that many different countries throughout history would use cosmetics for
beauty purposes. In the Middle East, they were used for medicines as well, but they also made
scented sticks as a kind of roll on perfume, and used a black powder called kohl as eyeliner.

Why Did Women Start Wearing Makeup?

Today, a great percentage of women (and a small percentage of men) apply makeup daily. There
is a simple reason for this: they want to look good. They can hide flaws in the skin and enhance
the natural appearance of certain facial features. Archeological evidence shows the Egyptian
ladies were dolling themselves up as early as 4000B.C. This was mainly, or at least in good part,
to please the gods, as the women felt their appearance was directly related to their spiritual
worth. So the Egyptians created the first cosmetics (no word on whether they received
makeovers at malls along the Nile).

Makeup in 2000s
Now cosmetics is changed from makeup. There are number of makeups products in this era. The
makeup or the MAGIC. WE will describe it with a picture.

THE Basic Purpose of the makeup.

The basic purpose of the makeup is to look prettier and white.
In this word there are 3 types of skin colors
1. White
2. Black
3. Brown

Everyone wants to look white. “Whiteness” or having white skin is considered an important
element in constructing female beauty in Asian cultures. A dramatic
growth of skin whitening and lightening products has occurred in Asian markets. Contemporary
meanings of whiteness are influenced by Western ideologies as well as traditional Asian values
and beliefs.
10 Harmful Side Effects Of Makeup
1. Headaches

2. Hair Problems

3. Acne

4. Skin Allergies

5. Eye Infections

6. Infertility

7. Premature Ageing

8. Hormonal Imbalance

9. Cancer

10. Skin Discoloration

Obsession for Fair Skin Color in Pakistan

The aim of this research is to study the variables contribute in creating obsession for fair skin
color in Pakistan. Three factors are examined as independent variable i.e. inferiority complex,
social pressure and advertising keeping obsession as dependent variable. There are number of
Asian countries where white or fair skin color counts as a key factor in beauty. In an article Goon
& Craven (2003) stated that in our culture dark skin color is linked with low income people who
work as field labor while white skin is associated with superior class which hold power. For skin
lightening, there are many creams and bleaching agents are available in the market. Besides these
products different procedures are also available such as cosmetic therapies by dermatologists and
non- medicated treatments in beauty salons. Del Guidice (2002) mentioned that skin lighteners
are not only common in Asian countries but also commonly available in non-white regions of
world i.e. Africa. From the above findings it can be said that obsession for the fair skin color has
significant positive relationship with the inferiority complex, social pressure and advertising. As
per discussed in the literature section all the studied variable have impact in creating
consciousness, which with passage of time becomes obsession, among individuals regarding
their skin color. With the advancement of technology distances have become shorter; people
have become more social than earlier. This increased interaction has led them being conscious
about having more friends, being liked in social circle and having good looking life partner for
making a good couple. It is shown in figure 3, that there are small variations among different
reasons of using skin fairness / whitening products or treatments. In South Asian culture good
looking means having fair skin color, so people use such products or treatments which make
their skin whiter. Though they may have moderate to severe side effects. Advertising has created
buzz on mass media, outdoor media or social media of such products by showing people that
they can have a fair skin color in few weeks to few days which ultimately lead people to try
those products at least once. It can be observe in figure 2, where
respondents voted in favor of options that they use fairness or whitening products by judging
themselves through
advertisements.

 In Pakistan, a disease called dark skin

“I'm the girl who's instantly offered whitening facials in a salon even if I go to get my moustache
waxed.

I'm the woman in Sialkot who has been rejected and is 'still on the shelf'; I'm also that cousin of
yours that you will never find pretty, regardless of how scintillating I appear.

You see, I'm suffering from a disease: Kaala Rang.

They talk about me daily on morning shows and remedies for my condition are readily available
on TV.

I'm certain that the days aren't far when whitening labels would also be found on food packages
(to be consumed at daytime, to glow like a tubelight at night), or when some affectionate herbalist
lady walks up to me and hands me a chalk to smear on all over my face.
Perhaps, even then, our ladies would complain, 'Yeh chalk ka shade sahi nahin tha aur gora moo
chahiye!' (The chalk wasn't the right shade of white, I wanted a lighter one).
Which brings me to the question, who keeps this obsession with gori rangat (fair complexion) alive
in our society? Males or females? I'm of the opinion that it's mostly the women folk.

The same women who only settle for a fair daughter-in-law have also passed this check-her-shade-
then-reject gene to their sons, the theory being that a fair bahu will produce fair grandchildren,
which will ultimately lead to a gora Pakistan!
Our society has no room for the dusky ones. We are the untouchables then, it seems.

Kia Kali rangat hona mera apna faisala tha?

Instead of shaming this ideology and putting it in its rightful place (the trash can), our social fabric
continues to promote the idea. Ladies throng to parlours in the hope of looking their fairest and
not their best; physical features be damned.

There are no buyers for the sanwali. But, here's some news, we are not for sale. It is time to own
up to this beautiful brown shade and reject all those who think of us as lesser beings.

Companies will continue selling their tanning creams in the west, while cashing in on the fair skin
complex in the east. The need of the hour is for dark-skinned ladies to take a bold stand and stop
contributing with their money and silence to anything labelled 'whitening'; don't encourage this
by secretly trying out those totkas (home colonial mindset remedies).

'Yes I am kaali, but you have a regressive mindset and ain't no one got a cream for that'.

It is important to dismantle the culture of mocking, brick by brick: when we embrace ourselves
and are not hassled by name-calling, we take the power in our own hands. They will never make
room for us, we have to shove ourselves in.

It is great to work on your education or your interpersonal skills, but equally important to wear
your skin with pride ‒ it is what nature designed for you.

That is the only way to cure a society ailing from this hideous complexion complex, but till then,
keep praying for its recovery.

Get well soon, Pakistan”

(Maria Sartaj Updated September 30, 2015)

 Read me: https://www.dawn.com/news/1209730
  The Never-Ending White Skin Dilemma In
Pakistan:
“Shakal dekhi hai apni? Kitni kaali hogayi ho. [Have you seen your face? You’ve become so
dark].”
What a lovely way to start a conversation. This happened with a 17-year-old girl, yes just
seventeen, when a woman decided to discuss her skin color with her, and that too, publicly. But
that wasn’t all.
“Itni creamein milti hain. Dhoop ne rung barbaad kardia hai tumhara. [So many kinds of
creams—sunblock—are available. The sun has ruined your color.]”
And now, for the cherry on the cake…
“Hat lagakay jaya karo college. Jo hansay, samjho tumse jalta hai. Abhi se rung ka khayal
nahin rakhogi tou agay jakay achay rishtay kesay aengay tumharay liye? [You should wear a
hat to college. If anybody laughs, assume he/she is jealous of you. If you don’t take care of your
skin now, how will good marriage proposals come your way?]
At first, I was only wondering why skin color is such a big problem in this country. But when I
heard the woman suggest that the only way to getting ‘good marriage proposals’ is by not
being kaali, it made me realize that people can show one down in the worst ways possible.
So teenage girls should just keep their books aside, and work on their skin color because if they
don’t, they will never get married. And obviously, marriage is the first and last thing people care
about here. Yes, because now every dark colored female that I see from now, I will safely assume
that she is never going to get married. Gori chitti larkiyaan are who people prefer. Because in
Pakistan, gora is equal to beautiful. Why I say so? Haven’t you heard anyone say, “Itni pyari
gori chitti larki hai. [She is such a pretty and fair colored girl]. As for the girls who aren’t gori
chitti, “Iss rungatt pe yeh color pehena hai isne? Apna rung dekh ker kapray pehene chaheye
hain. [She has worn this color with a skin tone like hers? One should wear colors that go with
their skin tone].”
How obsessed is this country with fair complexion? It isn’t just in households where the
wordgorais used, but also on TV, advertisements, movies, dramas etc. Dark complexion girls are
used in advertisements, in which they show the audience that they use a particular fairness
cream and voila, they are gori and they have been saved. We cannot only blame brand name
because that’s just marketing! It is the society which should be blamed for hailing the existence
of a product like this and many others which supposedly lighten skin color. For those who are
too scared to use these creams, they rely on life-saving totkas (tidbits). And for real, if you ever
hear someone sharing such a totka with you, it’ll sound more like a recipe to cook something.

Dark complexion is more like a taboo here. This word kaala is used so frequently that those who
use it don’t realize how it can hurt people with a dark complexion. Don’t they have the right to
live a normal life just because they are dark? On morning shows, it is so normal for them to pick
out dark complexion girls and do makeup on them. Once done, it looks like they have been
whitewashed. With the ‘before and after’ versions blinking on the TV screen, the show’s host
asks the audience to agree that she looks ‘beautiful’ in the ‘after’ look. I think that in Pakistan,
girls already go through so much when larkay waalay put forward a list which tells the kind of
girl they are looking for. The most common points on that list: fair, beautiful, tall, educated etc.
So many of the larkay waalas who end up at a dark complexioned girl’s house via a rishtay
waali khaala/ khaloo, make faces in front of that girl to show rejection to her only because she is
dark. They reject all her qualities on the basis of her color which they think makes her look ugly.
The society as a whole needs to grow up and accept that dark skin color does not define ugliness
nor is that person supposed to be stared at. She should not be given tips to work on her
complexion. She should not be gifted fairness products. And stop feeling sorry for her! She is just
as normal as any fair skinned girl is”
(May 14, 2016, Sheema Khan.)

 Read me: https://www.samaa.tv/opinion/2016/05/the-never-ending-white-skin-dilemma-

in-pakistan/

Discrimination based on skin color, also known

as colorism or shadeism, is a form of prejudice or discrimination in which people are treated
differently based on the social meanings attached to skin color.
Research has found extensive evidence of discrimination based on skin color in criminal
justice, business, the economy, housing, health care, media and politics in the United
States and Europe. Lighter skin tones are seen as preferable in many countries
in Africa and Asia.

 India
It was mistakenly thought by Western scholars that Hindu goddess Kali represents demonic
powers and ugliness and, as a dark skinned goddess (whose name translates to "she who is
black"), is therefore a demonstration of Indian colorism. This however was later understood to
not be true, as Kali is actually traditionally viewed positively, seen as a symbol of sexuality,
motherly love, violence, and power. There also remain plenty of examples of black being
exemplified as holy as with Shiva, and the most well known and popular avatars of the god
Vishnu, Krishna and Rama. More recently, this was understood to have been a strategy by
British colonial powers to subjugate Indian civilization.
Colorism in India has also been fueled due to the events under British colonial rule, where
British officials consistently demeaned dark-skinned Indians and favored light-skinned Indians
for jobs over dark-skinned Indians. As a result of hundreds of years of British colonial influence,
Indian society today still portray remnants of the exacerbated colorism tactics instilled in Indian
society by the British. Other forms of colorism in India can be seen in the cosmetic industry,
where creams meant to lighten skin are popular, and in the Bollywood industry, where majority
of actors and actresses hired are light-skinned, and actresses are often photoshopped to look
lighter.
For example, in the state of Maharashta a group of young tribal girls trained to be flight crew
through a government scholarship program that aimed to empower women. The majority of girls
were denied employment due to their darker skin-tone. A few of those women landed jobs, but
only as out-of-sight ground crew.

 Pakistan
Skin-lightening creams are popular in Pakistan, especially among women. Many such ads feature
light-skin models in good light while portraying dark-skinned models poorly. Bollywood, which
largely features light skinned Indian actors, is also influential among Pakistanis.

As every society does, the Pakistani society has incessantly constructed standards of beauty
around which it deems it appropriate to pass judgement. Fairness of skin is one such standard.
Tracing the roots of this fairness obsession reveals that it emanates from the influence of the
British on the Subcontinent blacks, who under the British domination, had come to believe that
fair skin would elevate their depraved status. However, merely rejecting the perversion of this
obsession today on an event rooted in history is not going to lead to any conducive situation or
change. If it happened in the past, it should not necessarily define the future of a nation as well.

Efforts should be rendered to accept appearances as they are and surely this is something not
possible without an overhaul in societal attitudes. As a starter, media can play a pivotal role in
deconstructing the fair and lovely fad, by instilling in audiences a need to be comfortable in their
own skin, by showing dark sinned protagonists making a name of their own in life and
succeeding against all odds.

But the main change will come from the unit of family itself, when the parents would instill in
their children a realization that judging someone on mere appearances reflects their mentality
and approach towards life; how they might find loveliness in fairness but fail to appreciate its
permeation in darkness.

Many Pakistanis, and their Indian neighbors, are obsessed with the desire to be white. Women
stay out of the sun, get whitening facials, and wear powder white makeup for their wedding
pictures. The less sophisticated end up looking like ghosts with bright white faces in the photo
albums. When parents are looking for a bride from their son, they will certainly be looking for a
girl who is fair skinned. Pakistanis usually consider the Pashtuns and the Kashmiris to be
among the most attractive of the local people. Both of these people groups have fairer skin
than many other Pakistani peoples.

Women desire to be fair skinned for good reason, as it seems the majority of local men are more
attracted to lighter skinned beauties.

 “We are racist, like our parents were;

Growing up I was often told by my parents to stay out of the sun. Like most middle class
Pakistanis, they were worried that the complexion of my skin will become dark if I spent too
much time outside. My aunts flung concerned glances at me and my cousins during summers,
especially when we were returning home after playing cricket, and made taunting comments
about our tanned skin. Thus, from a very early age I learned that having dark skin was
something to be embarrassed of.
My classmates were also familiar with this racial demarcation, so making fun of kids with a
darker skin tone was quite common. The discrimination against dark-skinned people in Pakistan
is as prevalent among adults as it is at the school level. For most front desk, sales and customer
relations jobs, preference is given to fair-skinned candidates because many companies believe
that employees with a white-complexion can make a better impression on the clients. While
looking for a suitable spouse for their sons, parents almost always give extra points to fair-
skinned girls. I still remember being flabbergasted when a few of my male cousins rejected
scores of girls solely on the basis of the color of their skin.
Let’s face it. We are racist without even realising it. But, it is not our fault. We’ve been
conditioned since childhood to hold the fairer-skin tone in higher regard. Now the million dollar
question is how this discrimination came to be so deeply rooted in the culture and social fabric
of Pakistan?
It seems to have been a gradual process that began thousands of years ago when white-skinned
foreigners invaded the subcontinent. From the Aryans to Greeks to the more recent Europeans,
we came under the rule of a variety of foreign powers, most of whom had a fair-complexion. As a
result of this, we began to think of white-skinned people as a superior race. The caste system in
India further contributed to this discrimination because the Brahmans, who belong to the highest
cast, also have fair complexion.
However, discrimination on the basis of the caste system has been abolished throughout the
subcontinent, and European powers have long since stepped out of both India and Pakistan. Why
then, are we still stuck in this old and absurd form of racism? Why are we unable to grow out of
this discriminatory mindset and look beyond the color of a person’s skin?

The answer partly lies in the portrayal of beauty in our media. While many Indian actresses have
a darker skin tone, not once have I seen a Pakistani actress who was not white. There are many
Pakistani ads, songs and films that advocate the merits of having a fair-complexion. Even
corporations are instilling and reinforcing this racism in our minds by promoting beauty
products and creams aimed at making the skin fairer.

Kya goray rang ka zamana kabhi ho ga na purana?

(Will the age of white-complexion never grow old?)

Whether or not we will ever completely overcome this racism, I do not know. But, perhaps it will
slowly seep out of our minds if the media stops reinforcing it. We, on our part, should also stop
idolising the white skin and must not pass on this racist notion to the younger generation.”

By Obed Suhail
Published: January 12, 2011

Read me: https://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/3790/we-are-racist-like-our-parents-were/

Ads
The most popular beauty product in Pakistan is Fair and Lovely cream. Recently, this company
has come up with a skin-bleaching product for men called Fair and Handsome. The commercials
show
a darker skinned young man sulking because he can't get a date. After putting on the cream, his
skin tone becomes quite a bit lighter. Suddenly the scene changes and he's a glowing white-faced
man surrounded by supermodels. Even Indian actor Shahrukh Khan has starred in a Fair and
Handsome commercial, bringing him a lot of flack from the more Westernized Indian press.
Conclusion
 Cosmetics used for healing purpose
 As time passes it is use to enhance beauty
 Cosmetics changes to Makeup
 Color based discrimination
 In Pakistan beauty means to look whiter
 Marriage issues
 Parents behavior
 Dump commercials
 Inferiority complex
People start believing that if you are not white you are not beautiful. And there is no place for
ugly people and this cause depression, stress, and other psychological effects.
Who you are and how you look, actually gifted by nature. Every one need to be confident
about his/ her looks. You are actually blessed with the best. THE END….