SKIN lightening in bollywood

[nishafromhouston]

not that im condoning it but how do these stars make their skins that light. it seems new to me. i just dont understand how most of these actresses have regular brown skin but then once they get into bollywood they're like a different person with lighter skin...how do they DO that?
I love my brown skin by the way...i was just wondering what their secret was...

[Sunny]

Loads of foundation(make-up) and lighting on their face.

[Dil Bert]

[...] once they get into bollywood they're like a different person with lighter skin...how do they DO that?

I think these threads have some of the answers buried within them: http://bollywhat.com/forum/index.php?topic=9522.0 , for example:
http://bollywhat.com/forum/index.php?topic=5662.msg63869#msg63869

Use heavy sunscreen for a couple months and the skin will be lighter.

[prican411]

I actually was thinking about this when i saw the promos for Neal n Nikki. I haven't seen anything by Uday since Mohhabatein, and I automatically thought 'Does this guy have Michael Jackson syndrome?"

[albatross]

Loads of foundation(make-up) and lighting on their face.

yep Sometimes you can see where the makelines end.

nishafromhouston be very careful if you do use it some of them cause serious skin problems . In some indian magazine i saw a lightening product for babies!     

[Dil Bert]

yep Sometimes you can see where the makelines end.

Sometimes it's formed by an actual whitening mask:
http://www.china-suppliers.org/prod_img/a1/1000698/pb_100005086.jpg
http://www.china-suppliers.org/product_html/Other-Purpose-Paper.html (scroll down)

In some indian magazine i saw a lightening product for babies!

Gee, you'd think they could just keep the kid in a dark womb or something.

[crazyone]

A lot of it is just lighting, I think.  Even in real life, with certain photos I've noticed people's skin colors look lighter depending on the amount of flash, etc. 

Though it was brought up here, I don't understand why people think this lightening phenomenon only is there for the women. It's always been considered good for men to be fair as well (both in the movies and in real life), but since they don't live and die by their looks to the extent that women do, it's not as big of a deal.

Has anyone noticed how dark Cary Grant looks next to all of his female co-stars? 

[albatross]

A lot of it is just lighting, I think.  Even in real life, with certain photos I've noticed people's skin colors look lighter depending on the amount of flash, etc. 

Though it was brought up here, I don't understand why people think this lightening phenomenon only is there for the women. It's always been considered good for men to be fair as well (both in the movies and in real life), but since they don't live and die by their looks to the extent that women do, it's not as big of a deal.

Has anyone noticed how dark Cary Grant looks next to all of his female co-stars? 

only later in life - he looks darn funny in to catch a thief like the make up department went overboard, but earlier films not so much:

[crazyone]

Well, it's harder to tell in B/W films, but I'm specifically thinking of Charade and North by Northwest. 

Are you saying they put makeup on him to make him look darker?  If so this is the opposite of Bollywood.

[Darshana]

Has anyone noticed how dark Cary Grant looks next to all of his female co-stars? 

Yes!!!! I never thought of it being makeup or even intentional, though.  Great that you bring this up.

I have an idea that I have often noticed, in black and white movies, that men (this is all-Caucasian movies I mean) are always darker than women.  But the image of Cary Grant with just about anybody is always my reference point.

I kind of think Caucasian men, photographed in black and white, do come out looking darker than women.  Like if men wore foundation makeup, would very many of them wear the palest shades?  I think not.  But maybe we can start a scientific project, looking at & taking random male/female photos.

[crazyone]

I was talking about Cary Grant in color, actually. 

I actually think there might be hormonal reasons why men are somewhat darker than women--they do have different skin.  I've noticed this in both European and Indian people, that the men tend to have darker/thicker skin then the women.  Think of how many Caucasian men you can think of with leathery reddish skin, while this is a much rarer skin type with women.  I don't think it's just makeup.

[panjabigator]

its a sad fact....
I remember when I was younger, my mom used to take a loofa (they can also be made from dried squash...BELIEVE ME!), and then some basin ka attaa (basin i think is like cornmeal maybe, and atta is flour), and make some paste and make me scrub to lighten me up.  She was convinced that some of my tan was dirt that could be removed!!!!!  As since she has lightened up (pardon the pun), and leaves me to my brownness...but it was tramatizing...!

Whenever I come home from college (like 1 month spans), I sometimes here remarks on the darkness of my skin...and people at school...indians my age (18-22...im 20) cannot believe Im punjabi do to my color....its fascinating really!  Btw...im the darkest one in my family!

[crazyone]

Whenever I come home from college (like 1 month spans), I sometimes here remarks on the darkness of my skin...and people at school...indians my age (18-22...im 20) cannot believe Im punjabi do to my color....its fascinating really! Btw...im the darkest one in my family!

People have all these stereotypes--South Indians are very dark, Punjabis are very fair, etc.  In my experience nearly every group of Indians has very broad variations in skin color, even within the same family. 

[lena]

Has anyone noticed how dark Cary Grant looks next to all of his female co-stars? 

Yes!!!! I never thought of it being makeup or even intentional, though.  Great that you bring this up.

I have an idea that I have often noticed, in black and white movies, that men (this is all-Caucasian movies I mean) are always darker than women.  But the image of Cary Grant with just about anybody is always my reference point.

I kind of think Caucasian men, photographed in black and white, do come out looking darker than women.  Like if men wore foundation makeup, would very many of them wear the palest shades?  I think not.  But maybe we can start a scientific project, looking at & taking random male/female photos.

Well, remember that at the time that Cary Grant was making movies, it was very fashionable for Caucasians to have dark tans.

[Dil Bert]

Well, remember that at the time that Cary Grant was making movies, it was very fashionable for Caucasians to have dark tans.

Yep: http://www.msstate.edu/Images/Film/CaryGrant.jpg    Even in normal pictures of him, he's much darker than, say, William Powell.

[Darshana]

Has anyone noticed how dark Cary Grant looks next to all of his female co-stars? 

Yes!!!! I never thought of it being makeup or even intentional, though.  Great that you bring this up.

I have an idea that I have often noticed, in black and white movies, that men (this is all-Caucasian movies I mean) are always darker than women.  But the image of Cary Grant with just about anybody is always my reference point.

I kind of think Caucasian men, photographed in black and white, do come out looking darker than women.  Like if men wore foundation makeup, would very many of them wear the palest shades?  I think not.  But maybe we can start a scientific project, looking at & taking random male/female photos.

Well, remember that at the time that Cary Grant was making movies, it was very fashionable for Caucasians to have dark tans.

That's true.  And I think he was dark to start with, maybe the way some Welsh people are (though as far as I know he was from a London family).

[albatross]

I was talking about Cary Grant in color, actually. 

unfortunately i dont think there are any color films with him in them prior to 1950....certainly all the classics from when he was in his 30s and early 40s are b&w....however I still think he appeared darker in the 50s and 60s....
that said.....
i believe he was the man behind the original description "tall dark and handsome"

Most of the time the female lead in both bw and hw, is lighter than the man...

[prican411]

I was talking about Cary Grant in color, actually. 

unfortunately i dont think there are any color films with him in them prior to 1950....certainly all the classics from when he was in his 30s and early 40s are b&w....however I still think he appeared darker in the 50s and 60s....
that said.....
i believe he was the man behind the original description "tall dark and handsome"

Most of the time the female lead in both bw and hw, is lighter than the man...

I have to say that i prefer the tall dark and handsome look...ie.Clark Gable

[phul]

I remember I was quite (pleasantly) surprised in Dil Chahta Hai when Saif's character was paired with a much darker Sonali Kulkarni.