In team A- we have the unprocessed celebrities- examples of Nutan, Waheeda Rahman, Judi Dench, Kajol, Priyanka Gandhi and Manisha Koirala coming to mind, amongst many simple but glorious personalities
who are naturally beautiful-meaning untouched by surgeons / dentists etc. Those who still carry around their original body parts unaffected by the media’s demand for outlandishness, with their dignity and poise perfectly in place.
In team B- we have the blatantly administered lot that concedes to every single definition of beauty that gets printed in the magazines. If tomorrow blonde eyebrows are in- by this afternoon these manufactured wonders are bleached. Needless to say, these indi viduals don’t resemble their graduation photographs by a mile. Examples of which would be most obviously Cher, Pamela Anderson, Jordan, and Jennifer Lopez etc and on our Indian shores we have another long list headed by Ms. Sherawat. Ever wondered why these celebrities always have a point to prove, an unnecessarily loud statement to make, just to make sure that they make the news?
This review is an effort to bring awareness to the articulate MSian, of the callous world of the media that eulogizes plastic surgery- cosmetic surgery, hypes perfection vis-à-vis stereotypes of physical beauty, and successfully manages to convince the youth that this is the answer, and the certified ‘easy way out’ to all problems, personal, professional and sometimes irrational.
A case in point would be the Miss. India’s and some of the Mr. India contestants- the ones that win the crowns and are due to represent the country at the next stage i.e. Universe, World, Asia Pacific and Earth are thoroughly primped. Diana Hayden had her jaws chiselled, a host of them get their teeth realigned, and other cosmetic surgeries considered ‘minor’- such as rhinoplasty, or reshaping of the nose, lifting the eyebrows, cheek implants, realigning the hair line, removal of double chins and excess fat elsewhere on the body are basics that no contestant can escape, or wants to.
So we have a bunch of designed beauties, realigned, restructured and brainwashed to such an extent, that it makes a complete farce or mockery of the competition itself. When the entry to the contest is apparently so stringent, so much of publicity and seemingly importance given to intelligence, presence of mind etc, after winning the crown, the contestant just joins in with the media’s image of perfection. No winner is actually revolutionising anything, or trying to be unique- she’s just trying to fit into her 5 yrs of fame.
There’s a whole directory of best looking celebrities by magazines abroad that carry the names of the sexiest male or female stars, compiled solely by their readership. It’s not necessary to mention that there are fewer ‘Team A’ stars on that list than there are honest politicians. Most of these stars have surgically enhanced chest’s or backsides, straightened noses, implanted cheeks, eyelids, flatter ears, stretched and botoxed skin, have had excess fat removed dozens of times, hair woven repeatedly and a host of other operations.
Many of these cosmetic operations have to be performed repeatedly throughout ones life so as to detain what the body ages, but still not look too awkward among ones peers. How many of us would want parents who look so fake that they could get lost among Madame Tussad’s wax statues? And this happens.
Eventually many consider or embody the surgically enhanced façade of youth to fit in. Plastic surgeons and dermatologists performing such surgeries in India are astounded at the floodgates that have opened up in their vocation demanding all sorts of enhancements. This generation that believes that everything can and should be altered for better acceptance is the crowd that will never be satisfied with themselves.
People closely following celebrities, generally glorify their actions wanting to be as good looking as them, thinking that by being beautiful, they can get anything that they desire- money and fame, good employment, friends, boyfriends etc.
The truth is that no matter how perfect the physical appearance, if one does not have a pleasant disposition or personality and atleast an ounce of intelligence, the entire effort negates itself. We think our heroines, Indian and Western are having such a rocking life being famous and rich only because of the way they look, but in reality they’ve given a lot more of themselves physically and psychologically to get to where they are, which to most of us comparatively respectable folks, is crossing the line of decency.
It’s a vicious circle of constant appointments to better oneself further, large sums of money, waves of depression, competition and finally the perpetual feeling of inadequacy. In addition there’s a lot of risk involved that can cause irreversible damage. Basically, improving ones appearance significantly is not the remedy to a better life. Often psychiatric help is suggested to improve ones self-esteem. If one is very unhappy with the way they look, there are many non-surgical and less drastic options that can be considered, keeping the plastic surgeon as a last resort after all the risks have been carefully contemplated upon. For many, surgery is the only option, but it is for such people that the surgeon is a Godsend.
Superficial and materialistic as our world has become, one must respect the individuality that each of us is entitled to, instead of becoming a commodity to the media. I have attached a link of a site that has pictures of many surgically enhanced celebrities, which might be of interest to some. Lastly, please do leave your opinions / comments. · https://awfulplasticsurgery.us/hollywood_female_stars/index.html
·https://awfulplasticsurgery.com
This review appears in this category because of a technical problem wherein I can’t add it in the ’personal grooming’ category where it rightfully belongs. I do hope MS can move it when the problem is solved.
