Tanned, and lovin' it !

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One day I attended to a teenage girl on an online forum. She told me that wherever she goes—be it Canada, New York or Australia, tanned skin is perceived to be more sexy. She said that many of her girlfriends tan their bodies under the sun, and it kinda looks sexy on them. She too wants to tan, but her mum doesn’t allow it saying that it causes skin cancer. “Given a chance, I would sit all day long (bare-bodied) at the beach, and tan every single inch of my skin.” She says, “It’s looks so appealing! When I see those sexy sun-kissed women at beach flaunting their ‘Lebanese olive-skinned’ bodies, I feel so unfortunate that I’m not allowed to be like them. Even I’ve had my boyfriend say to me that why don’t I tan like most other girls. I know it turns him on.”

Today skin tanning has become a symbol for luxurious indulgence; quite contrary to an era where having a tanned skin was associated with being from a lower social background. In some cultures, skin tone has lot to do with social status. A person with a tan is supposed to be something like a farmer or a laborer who gets his exposed skin dark by working under the sun all day long. But as I said, in many western cultures, being tanned connotes to having a luxurious life. You can think about those rich peoples who go on tropical vacations-spending hours at the beach, playing volleyball, surfing or lounging under the sun. This has all got to do with the growing beach culture where having a sexy, sun-kissed skin is perceived to be attractive, and being pale is considered to be a result of staying indoors all the time, not enjoying life to the fullest.

Of course, the craze for white, porcelain skin is still alive. Even today, when you go to countries like India and china, and you’ll see women who go to any length to get their skin bleached to a pale hue. (This only makes me wonder how selective the standards of beauty can appear to be when viewed from a cross-cultural perspective!) Here in India, women use fairness creams to achieve that fair look which defines the beauty standards in the country. While creams like ‘fair and lovely’ has been serving Indian women since 1956, the recent bollywood trends has caused men to be vigilant of their skin color too. They too want whiter skin, and to cater to their needs cosmetic industry has brought products like “fair and handsome”!

There’s a whole lot of discussion among men and women about what type of women looks sexier—tanned or pale. 

When someone asks me whether I like girls with tanned or pale skin, I really get into a type of predicament. I pretend that I personally don’t care but I do get my predilections popping up. I know a lot of white skinned girls who turn me on with their pastel glow; but at the same time I also got a thing for those radiant sun-kissed beauties you see lying nude on the beach flaunting their exotic summer look! I think being tan can make you look exotic, and radioactive (if that sounds sexy), but its not a necessary thing I look for.  I think it all depends upon the kind of culture you’ve been living with. It’s more of a personal style thing.