What Filter Do You Choose?

I just read a few insightful articles about India’s open obsession with white skin and its effects on the fashion industry and Bollywood. It led me to think about how brown girls are affected by our Indian culture’s obsession with white skin and our American culture’s obsession with a golden tan. Miss America, Nina Davuluri 2014 is a prime example of this conundrum, so many of us realize that she is too “dark” to ever be Miss India but her beautiful skin tone (along with her talent and personality) has been granted one of American beauty’s highest honors. Brown girls living in the US are faced with these seemingly opposite notions of beauty everyday. This leads me to ask, how you filter your selfies on instagram? Do you choose Amaro or Sierra to give your self a ‘fair and lovely’ lift? Or do you prefer Lo-Fi to highlight the contrast between your deep brown skin at that deep red lipstick your rocking? 

photo cred: motherjones.com 
photo cred: motherjones.com 
An example from my Instagram feed 
An example from my Instagram feed 

I’ve caught myself choosing an Instagram filter that makes me look fairer. I’ve even posted a few severely flashed out deer-in-headlights photo where you can barely make out the shape of my nose. I could argue that these filters make my eye pop and make my skin look smoother and flawless, but I’d rather not lie. I choose them because they make me look whiter therefore, more beautiful. I’m disappointed in myself to know that I want to make myself lighter to feel prettier. I know I’m not alone because I’ve noticed a bunch of my brown skinned girlfriends post similar super lightened photos of themselves on social media. 

What filter do you choose? 

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Neha Uberoi

Neha Uberoi is a mental health professional, social entrepreneur and former professional tennis player.