Let’s play a guessing game. Read this beauty related tip from the Q&A page of a magazine.
Q: I have rough elbows. How do I get rid of them?
A: Start by washing the areas well using lots of moisturizer. Then rub a mixture of lemon juice and glycerine. You could use the inside of a papaya and rub again.
Which is the magazine?
Femina ? Wrong!
Savvy ? You lose again.
Cosmopoliton ? No! Give up?
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Believe it or faint, it’s from ‘Man’s World’!
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As a first impression, the number of pages ‘Man’s World’ dedicates to male vanity, is surprising. A recent issue was jam-packed with tips on how to moisturize different body parts, how to do a facial, pluck eyebrows, etc
Now in addition to everything else before, is all this also expected out of us poor men? Rub Lime juice? PAPAYAA?? Save me, what is wrong with having rough elbows as long as they are clean?
These tips are accompanied by visuals of pouty, androgynous looking male models. I expect, in all seriousness, some forthcoming issue of this magazine to teach us how to gracefully drape a sari. Dash it, I won’t bring papaya anywhere near my elbows and I certainly don’t want to spend time reading such prissy nonsense.
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An almost dejecting emphasis on clothes, grooming, hairstyles and face-creams exists in ‘Man’s World’. Thankfully, this doesn’t disgruntle me alone, this dyspeptic overdose of articles that are ‘lookist’ (Flicked this term from ‘Politically Correct Bedtime Stories’, its on the lines of the word ‘sexist’) A letter to the editor (from a woman, incidentally) I remember, last year, read as follows,
“Style? Gujarat is burning, and the whole nation is going to hell in a hand basket and you guys are worried about white T-shirts? Get real”.
At a subtle level, you are goaded into believing that you’ve got to “look” hunky in the pub, “look” powerful in the boardroom, “look” sexy in bed, or else you are one big loser. Women’s magazines have peddled a sense of low self-esteem to hapless, victimized ladies for decades. Now comes our turn? A big thumbs down to it.
This is how ulterior interests like AD REVENUES makes magazines like these portray what they want us to believe constitutes a 'Man’s World.'
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An overemphasis on Bollywood makes you groan further. Bollywood stars (followed at a distant second place by cricketers) adorn the covers and occupy page after page, month after month.
Reading celebrity gossip and personal lives of the rich and famous is absolutely tiresome. Who wants to know what Nikhil Chinappa aspires to do further in his life and career? Take a head count of people who have even heard of him.
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All isn’t over yet. We also have here an agony column called ‘Dr. Know’.
Hello?? How much more ‘Womans’ Era’ or ‘Meri Saheli’ do you want to get? The childish concerns with sex and relationships that figure in this do not represent any man I know.
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Uno Momento! All above was but the first impression – Welcome now to the real Man's World ========================================================
There are quite a few readable articles and strong pieces, but with all the emphasis on style they are hardly accorded prominence and space.
GAME BOY: Go up to the Kumaon, Ranthambore, or angling at the Ramganga river. Looks like some men are having loads of fun.
ROAD TEST: gives you the exhaustive inside out of the every new vehicle launched
GADGETS: Right from rudimentary tips on buying a PC, to the latest palms, notebooks. The unending and mindboggling array of add ons to your home PC or mobile phones, home theatres.
THE TRAVELLING MAN: Takes you to the Tadoba Andhari tiger reserve, Mandu, Khajuraho, Ajanta Ellora caves. These interesting travelogues are accompanied by high quality pictures.
IMPERATIVES: A great section on diverse and extremely readable topics viz. how the Ferrari Enzo is an improvement over its predecessors, the origins of the best cocktails, some smashing cameras, Plato, e-publishing, art, etc
GALLERY: Features the newest lissome bodies of girls on the ramp or on the silver screen, let your eyes linger over them awhile and move on. There also is some text about them added as an afterthought, if text interests you.
FITNESS: Some real good reps to keep fit, and other health related matters
LISTS: Sanjay Sipahimalani gives some great music reviews, and the magazines list of the month’s best books on an eclectic mix of topics besides business is another of its good features
At times, the magazine profiles interesting people like India's first herpetologist working for National Geographic, mountaineers, deep sea divers, business tycoons, etc
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The magazine could have been great had it come minus all the filmi and glamourous trappings and certainly without those make-up tips and agony columns. As the months pass the number of such articles keeps swelling.
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At the most I may pick Man’s World over film magazines while waiting for my turn at the hair saloon, or scan through it in the lobby while leaving office. But subscribe or buy off the rack? No.
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Tried hard to be modestly dismissive, or casually nonchalant about it, but couldn’t fight myself from mentioning that this was my 50th review.
