Why do the Indian Society Shames Fat Women, Girls

Beta Tu na zumba join kar Alka ke yahan. Guarantee se 1 mahine me chaar kilo ghata legi. How many times have you witnessed Indian aunties police and shame women or young girls about their fatness? Be it teen girls or a girl who is at a marriageable age and even a married woman. So why is Indian society so obsessed with the weight gain of women?

Surprisingly, back in medieval times the princes and women used to be fat. The situation today is contradictory to the circumstances back then. Now what is required is a zero figure. But why?

In the 2000s a change came into the opinion of people. The zero figure era came. From then on everyone laid a unique emphasis on body thickness and thinness. During this time in the Bollywood industry also were concerned about exercise, diets, weight loss, food habits and fitness. The zero figure or body became integral. The models, actresses influenced everyone especially "women" to have that body type. Yet the zero body is aspiring every woman, be it a teenager or a middle-aged.

This tradition of Indians fat-shaming did not spare the celebrities also. The "Fat" actresses were often publicly shamed on media because of their body weight. Because they did not fit in the new normal of zero figure. They were put, on the list of fat celebrities.

This is not over yet. The fat-shaming does not just end here. In the Bollywood Industry, fat women or actresses were often given the role because of their fat bodies. This is how our Indian pop - culture furthermore strengthens the fat women and their bodies and segregate them from the others.

This fat woman dichotomy is furthermore reinforced by the Indian middle-class families. These family are often seen policing their teen girls for their body weight nor these girls are desired. The severe is when this policing is practised in the family get together where girls are body-shamed by their family members in front of the relatives.

But wait, the irony here is that no boy is policed for his weight. They take shed to their fat-shaming personality by saying that fatness brings other serious diseases like Thyroid, Diabetes, Blood Pressure and many more. But let us wait here and ponder, is this the right way to say that?

This binary of fatness is highly practised when rishtey wale comes to see the girl. It is when the girls are often subjected to face criticism because of their weight. Some common examples are, Jabtak tumhara weight reduce nahi hota, koi ladka wadka nahi milne wala tumhe" or Sharma Ji agar apki beti thoodi patli hoti toh ham rishtey ki baat thoodi aggey badhate."

The women who gain weight after their marriage are also viewed as a liability by their natal families just like an unmarried woman is. Sometimes even the rishtey wale rejects the marriage proposal because of the weight of their going to be daughter in law.

The usage of cutesy euphemisms like Golu-molu, chubby, plumpy or comparing you to any "chubby" animals is a common way of denoting that you are fat. Even the pados wali auntie will do it for free, even if she has to leave chintu to his tuition and take Minky back from her tuition or there is a get-together at her place and so she has to cook. Some chit chat aunties will give you pieces of advice like consume Sauf ka paani empty stomach. Which don't even work.

Therefore comparing a women's worth to her weight and then setting a benchmark of weight and figure measurements for her to attain is absurd. Also, we should not forget that perhaps our body structure not so good and perfect in the eyes of other people or it also may not be able to achieve that benchmark in the eyes of others.

Something that has to be deliberated upon is the many different shapes and sizes that exist. We just can't be biased and choose any one of them and quote that it is perfect. And the standards of external beauty have been regularly shifting and changed all along with human history. The thing here to halt and ponder is what is trendy today is something that was taunted long ago. And the thing which is admired now will have been reprimanded back then.

One inference that I have made is that in Indian society it is arduous and next to impossible for women and young girls to feel confident about their bodies because of the prevailing shaming. So next time before you jump and make nasty comments or use cute euphemisms about someone's body remember that there are diverse body shapes and sizes. Also that we should respect every body type.