Size zero prompts eating disorder concerns in India
I’ve known many women from the country of India, and all seemed to have a completely rational sense of what a “normal” woman looks like. Most had no problem with their curves, believing them to be beautiful, sexy, natural.
However, it would seem that the desire for a size zero has reached Bollywood.
According to two articles from CNN-IBN (which you can read here and here), Indian actress Kareena Kapoor went from voluptuous to scary skinny. In the words of one author (Ginny Narula), Kapoor’s:
“…size zero might get her plump assignments but it certainly is sending out a wrong message to all the young girls out there, who in their aspiration to look like her might starve themselves, ending up with serious medical implications.”
The tone of these articles implies that perhaps Indian women have not had to deal with these images before, but I can’t verify that. Consequently, I’d love to hear from anyone with more information on this topic or with firsthand experience as a native of or long-term visitor to India.
Tags: Bollywood, India, Kareena Kapoor, size zeroRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Celebrities, size zero
2 opinions for Size zero prompts eating disorder concerns in India
FilmiDiva
May 12, 2008 at 1:46 pm
I grew up in India and young girls there are as likely to have self and body issues as anywhere else. However Bollywood actresses are considered to be above the norm. I think this is the most public discussion about an actress’s weight that I can remember. Maybe she’s trying to be like our Miss World Airshwarya Rai who by the way, I just saw in Dhoom2 on TinselVision and she looks as magnificent as ever.
angelique
May 12, 2008 at 3:38 pm
FilmiDiva:
Thanks for writing in. I was wondering if anyone from India would give us the scoop from that country. I’m fascinated by the Bollywood scene; I didn’t realize its popularity. I’ll have to check out Miss World…
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