December 05, 2006
First Miss Great Britain of Indian originHumor
We have reached yet another milestone as a community, one that was critical to our development. A desi of Indian origin has seized the coveted Miss Great Britain title!
With so few beauty pageant titles left unclaimed by the rising tide of brown in swimwear and heels, it was very important that we capture each of the remaining tiaras:
British-born Preeti Desai has become the first person of Indian origin to win the Miss Great Britain title replacing original winner Danielle Lloyd after she was stripped off the award for reportedly dating Judge Teddy Sheringham and agreeing to pose for Playboy magazine. [Link]
As with many winners, she has a heart-warming story behind her victory, one of filial piety:
Preeti gave all credit to her mum, who is recovering, from a serious illness. “When she was crowned Miss Great Britain she rang to tell me and said, ‘The crown is for you.’ I burst into tears. I felt as if I won that crown. I felt as if I am Miss Great Britain. She only wants to see me happy - both my girls do. They want to see me smiling thanks to them I was able to overcome that dreadful illness,” Hema said. [Link]
Like all good desi children, Preeti is multi-talented and ambitious. She worked for years in hair and beauty, before making a career switch to the family fireworks business and she may now be trying to get into property investment. In what I think are her own words:
She then started, and is currently working for the family business G2 Fireworks full time and was made Jr partner, which she built up after years of working for G2 Fireworks from being a child… Recently she decided to move to London and work as a model until she raised enough money to eventually get into the property business. [Link]
If you’re a fan, you can read her myspace page and personal website.
ennis on December 5, 2006 05:45 PM in Humor, News, Profiles · T·r·a·c·k·b·a·c·k address · Direct link · Email post
This verifies Jai Singh's claim that Gujjus in the UK are hot!
kya maal hai...
can this be labelled NWSF? i'm not used to seeing that much brown flesh (nicely depiliated too!).
can i get a "GUJU in the house!?!?!"
Do you think it's deplilated? I thought brown women were just naturally hairless. I mean, they're asians, right?
Yay for the Desi girls!!!
I feel so proud.
Did you salute?
Now if my mom set me up with women like her, I'd be all about arranged marriages...
As a newcomer to SM, I must say you have the right marketing strategy: sophisticated conversation + hot girls
(Can we please run the following experiment: Let's try in this thread to avoid terms like "hitting it" or "I'd do her" or other puerile sexist crap. Thanks.)
not the first. the first was an afghan. she was actually touted as a role model of sorts... well maybe not... but was profiled in a cbc series on how the second gen muslims in the uk have to live a schism.
by the way, her naarha is hanging out out of her kuchha. very uncouth.
It's been a good year for Desai's winning things in England.
She looks a little like Indira Varma - similar noses, facial features. And, I too appreciate the depilation. Only yesterday, I discovered these two (though I don't care for their herpetological sidekicks).
if miss great britain read those type of comments, she would feel a lot more proud of her accomplishments right
Not to be a hater or nuthin', but she looks disturbingly scrawny to me. I know, I know, that's still the fashion, but my aesthetics prefer a little more flesh.
A proud moment for Nerd World. While we're at it, can we have a world class footballer too? One Vikash Dhorasoo is not enough.
Yay for ze UK browns! Let the exotification based out her outlier(to my eye) desi female form begin. :D
Not sure if I see the Indira Varma resemblance, but she looks like my sister-in-law (who is also Gujurati).
Are you joking?
Is that the browski?
This just in-- yes.
bengalis aren't as hairy. at least this bengali isn't. ax vinod, he's seen me in shorts.
My "sample population" exposure suggests otherwise.
I love her family business
Well they say there is not a single business type in the world that a Gujarati somewhere does not own.
But the best thing is her father's title:
MASTER PYROTECHNIC!!!
Holy Snapper! A MASTER no less --- Master Pyrotechnic!
I want to answer someone at a party, hey what d'you do, hey, I'm a Master Pyrotechnic.
Coolest Dad in Great Britain too, I reckon. Can you imagine at school, everyone else is like, oh, my Dad, he's a postman, a teacher, a truck driver, a doctor --- well screw you my Dad's a muthafuckin' MASTER PYROTECHNIC!!
My "sample population" exposure suggests otherwise.
...say more. your N is likely larger. i have heard that hirsuteness exhibits some dominance effects, so east asian admixture in bengal might be irrelevant.
random thoughts
1. why is she wearing a sash saying cleveland. OhaihaiO
2. her bum looks like something's taken a bite out of it.
3. there's a tumescent jigsaw piece pointing to her nether regions.
HEY. I saw you in those shorts too, Forgetful Jones.
Let's leave my N out of this, shall we? I'll just say that I wouldn't submit statistics based on it to Science or Nature. PNAS, perhaps, but then again, you can get just about anything published there.
Because she comes from Cleveland in the north-east of England, the original Cleveland, and she was probably representing that area in the Miss Great Britain competition.
HEY. I saw you in those shorts too, Forgetful Jones.
yes, but you didn't comment on my lack of body hair. v-man did, and compared it favorably to his lack of body hair (and people wonder about him...hmm....).
Firstly, how wonderful.
Secondly (and this is probably old lady jealousy on my part, I admit) but I agree with Nina P. I see the skinny-skinny is still all the fashion rage. I mean, eternal nineties waif Kate Moss is still a, uh, star. Hmmmm, on a purely aesthetic level, I always preferred the Marilyn Monroe type of curviness, but that started it's own 'pretty girl's have curves' hegemony. As Audrey Hepburn's surprise (initially) stardom subsequently showed.
Thirdly, why am I commenting on this post again? sin, sin? I'm sorry to hear about the rains, and hope all of your loved ones are safe, but, when you get a chance, more pictures of the XY variety, please. The neschool feminism is so about equal opportunity objectification. Old-school feminists are rolling over as I type.....
WOWAWEEWA!!!
Forget body hair discussions. Remember, silicon is safe, again (Extremely cheap shot; unworthy of me, of course. Chalk it up to Old lady jealousy.....grrr!)
Remember, silicon is safe, again
you serious? i mean, the studies come back with p-values of wut?
The jigsaw piece says," Breast Cancer (Something)," which doesn't make sense, but makes me smile because it doesn't make sense.
I'm so proud to see the crown -- with all the jewels included -- on a British desi's head!
Regarding the hair discussion, is the South Asian population more at risk of carrying genes for alopecia than *mainstream* groups?
forget p-values. Think, study design and patient selection......anyway, I was joking :) Dude, if those are real, I never had a chance to begin with! Also, some people get all the genetic luck......
is the South Asian population more at risk of carrying genes for alopecia than *mainstream* groups?
i think alopecia is whites & browns > africans > east asians.
here's a post by a co-blogger on hairiness which offers 'scientific' evidence that brownz are the hair-bomb.
anna, re: my hairiness, i only wanted to point out that my self-assessment has validation via v-man's visual inspection. since you didn't offer an opinion on that trait i couldn't offer yours as support for the veracity of my claims.
Also, some people get all the genetic luck......
yeah. variance in mutational load is what you'd expect from a discrete sampling process like dat.
namitabh bachan: I've often wondered. You see hair loss in older South Asian women quite often. Something to look up.
Emdee-di, I don't think it's "old lady jealousy" at all (and who you callin' old???). When I saw this picture, the first thing I noticed was how thin she was. Even Kate Moss has some flesh now (perhaps it is what's responsible for her horrid taste in men).
Anyway, if I had to stray that way, I'd be salivating over Scarlett Johansson, Beyonce, even J-Lo before someone skinny. More spankable acreage and whatnot. YMMV.
gotta say that i'm happy to see that "western" societies are recognizing that beauty comes in other forms than the "lightskin, blond hair, blue eyes" variety.
that said, i'm also a little perterbed at her longness. she looks really tall! perhaps my generalization doesn't hold true, but aren't most indians (and if she's gujarati, all the more so) on the short side.
perhaps there is a place where one can get lengthening treatments.
sbr, i'm 5'10"!!!
She is stunning but I second Nina P & MD. I'd be curious to know how much she weighs and her height. I know tiny petite women that can eat like horses but are naturally skinny so I wouldn't fault someone for being skinny but there are shots where here head looks as big as her waist and that's kinda creepy.
As for the Indian hairy thing, I always thought the average Indian is super hairy. Not until you see other women go thru hell to remove it do you realize there is yet another thing you can be grateful to your parents for...hairlessness. The last SM meetup involved a number of unnamed Mutineers comparing levels of hairness!
that said, i'm also a little perterbed at her longness. she looks really tall! perhaps my generalization doesn't hold true, but aren't most indians (and if she's gujarati, all the more so) on the short side.
she's 5'8. depends on the ethnicity, but we haven't seen brownz populations on a high cal. diet to a great extent. i'd south and east brownz are shorter than the european norm. northwest brownz (punjabis) are tall, though not as tall as northern europeans or nilotic blacks (i've seen data for a median of 5'8 for pashtuns in 1965, and they don't eat as well as americans).
So is this the first time a Desi will pose in Playboy?
Also, she's "sexy" in a model way and everything, but I don't think she's all that hot. I'm with Nina and MD, I prefer some badonk.
N-not to be sexist...
So is this the first time a Desi will pose in Playboy?
sunny leonne was in penthouse.
the alopecia question is really interesting seeing that long, lustrous tresses are a sign of beauty in south asia as well.
Oh, ANNA, old lady is my own little joke :) It has more to do with my eternal grumpiness than age...
Actually, anecdotally, I've seen a lot of aunties with thinning scalp hair. Diffuse, female pattern androgentic alopecia: basically female pattern baldness. Anyone else notice this phenom?
'Unsolicited' blatant public display/advertisement of you being 'straight' leaves quite a few...'uneasy'. Not cool bro!
I just had to go there. You know someone had to.
razib, that post is hilarious!
MD, I'm with you on this one. I've seen it in my ajji and all five of her sisters. amazing hair until menopause, then...nada.
Wow 16.7 BMI....that's considered severely underweight.
jeebus, no wonder she looks skinny -- she is! 5'8" and 110 llbs?!?
I think Baz Luhrman put it best:
Do not read beauty magazines.
They will only make you feel ugly.
I thought that magazine quote was from the urban-myth-Kurt-Vonnegut commencement speech....
it is a myth, you know.
baz luhrman at least put it in that cool suncreen song.
i'm not giving vonnegut any credit until someone who witnessed the speech comes forward :P
It's not THAT severe for a brown girl. The "desirable range" is 19-23. Being at 17 doesn't make her that unusual. She looks quite ok to me.
Uh oh. I have a feeling you're going to get a lot of flak for that comment.
NSFW warnings please !!!!
We loves the hotties ... but we gots to keep the job too.
19-23 is just for those with NO fat not necessarily average. That is the BMI of a skinny woman. And it is simply not normal to not have some fat in a woman. Lack of body fat can interfere in normal menstrual cycles among other deficiencies especially iron deficiency which is a very common thing among brownz. Also the difference of 2 BMI points at that weight is substantial.
The US BMI is 21 - 24 for a woman 5'8. I don't want to get lost in the semantics about this but 5'8 and 110 IS skinny.
Again before anyone makes this an issue, she is gorgeous, there is no denying that.
All the brown girls I knew in college were Punjabi or Guju and quite a few of the former were 5'8, if not taller. Thanks to friendster, I know exactly what these women look like now and I can safely say that we were all much tinier in college, which seems logical...we were 17-22 years old. We ate sugar, fat and caffeine and still fit in to either size 2 or 4. We all (even short me and my one Guju friend, both of us 5'6 and thus smaller) weighed more than 110 lbs.
If a BMI of "19" is the start of what is desirable, than wouldn't everything less than that be undesirable?
well, not flak so much... but it is a sad state when underweight "looks ok." on the other hand, she fits the norm, and is probably heavier than many other western models/"women of great beauty."
to namitabh, apologies. didn't mean to imply ALL desis were short. but most of the guratis i know (and since i am one, i know many) are shorter than 5'8"-- men or women!
tis okay. i'm not punjabi or gujarati either -- my family is from karnataka. so much for stereotypes :)
Sure, she is skinny but the U.S. BMI averages are skewed toward overweight people (given the obesity epidemic), mostly white and African American. I don't think it properly takes into account the Asian body frame (unless someone wants to educate me on this). I agree that she is skinny but I don't think she is all that unusual.
Sure, but being overweight outside the mean has a LOT more problems associated with it. I guess I am being provocative on purpose. It seems like its more PC to dissect the body of a skinny girl than of an overweight girl which I don't agree with.
It seems like its more PC to dissect the body of a skinny girl than of an overweight girl which I don't agree with.
just like itz more PC to diss on the light than the dark?
it ain't the same bro, it ain't the same :) but hey, iz ok, you defending a guju sister.
If you had the picture of a fat girl on there you'd get comments about that. Please I'm not skinny and I can assure you no one tries to be PC with people who aren't skinny!
She's skinny and hence the discussion because it is a beauty contest and she's a first so that means she's setting a precedence and is a role model. And I'm not saying it's unusual because I know plenty of skinny Indian woman who are perfectly normal and Asians are slimmer. Not denying that.
There is average between underweight and overweight.
Uh...being BOTH under- or overweight can KILL YOU. Neither is healthy. We shouldn't condemn one less than the other. I'm troubled that being underweight, which is often a result of an eating disorder is something worth defending, even if one is doing so just to be a contrarian.
Sigh. I'd rather write a post on something else than compose a comment which calls you out on your provocateur's stance. There's a REASON why it's not okay to dissect an "overweight" girl-- it's because our sense of what is overweight is so fucked up that we treat a normal, healthy body as if it is obese.
Again, if she had won that contest and had a bit of a belly roll, I guarantee that anyone who would have mentioned it would have gotten slammed in these comments. But it is more okay to say that she has no ass, etc. I just see that as a double standard is all.
I know quite a few South Asians (men and women) who are somewhat ectomorphic (including most of my family). My mom's BMI was less than Preeti's when she was at full term with me. I just don't think we (and that is a collective we) should have a double standard when it comes to judging people's bodies.
I'm not defending it and I'm not condemning either one. I am simply pointing out that both "underweight" and "overweight" seem to be on a sliding scale these days and I'd prefer to see nobody dissected for the perception that they are either one.
Why do "we" have to judge it at the first place ? A simple quote like "she's gorgeous" would suffice.
The author could have put a picture which was less revealing..and "we" wouldn't have had this discussion (not sure about that!).
Why do we have to nitpick every small detail of her body ?
girl, you be smokin', no matter the nature the arc of the ellipse of your brown skin@
Anna in 71: Werd.
Being underweight as a result of eating disorders can really mess up your body, sometimes long after you get over the ED. I have no numbers, but I'm willing to bet that almost all girls and women, whether or not they even realize it, have (had) some kind of ED at some point in their lives. Because skinny = good, people don't even think to express concern at the thinning frame; rather, they compliment and validate it. It really isn't adequately addressed as a health and culture issue.
Abhi:
Maybe in LA/UCLA, maybe in brown and black circles, and maybe on Sepia Mutiny, but it's still not ok for women to be "overweight" in the mainstream media. Turn on the TV or check out who's on the covers of beauty magazines. The archetype is still skinny-minny, and that's more harmful for women than if the archetype were a tad fleshier.
Of course, I don't disagree with that at all. I'm not trying at all to refute that in my comments here.
As a paleontologist I also trust that evolutionary pressure will determine the archetype of a woman a lot better than any magazine covers or unfair societal pressures. In order to give birth to my offspring a woman's hips will have to be wide enough and her body will have to be healthy enough (e.g., enough fat) to not reject the child. My naturally-honed man instincts know this better than what the magazines tell me. I'll have to be healthy too of course.
I swear I'm not that unromantic! :) (I think I just killed my game)
She may not stand out in nutritionally deprived countries (although her BMI is still below the mean), but she certainly does stand out in the UK/US.
I totally agree- she's hot. The problem arises when girls like me (who are not naturally ectomorphic, to use your word) force their bodies into believing they are, so we have what desi society considers the 'ideal' body size.
This is just so that more guys like you (I'm not picking on you, really!) would think we look 'ok.' After all, when was the last time you compared someone that was overweight to someone that looked like Miss GB and still used the same adjective? The pressure is on to emulate Miss GB's body type - and some of us would kill to look that way naturally.
Unfortunately.
According to your very cool and informative link, I'm PAKISTANI! w00t! Sin, I'm moving in, baby. :D
i think the point of contention is that if she had a bit of a belly roll, she (probably) wouldn't have won the contest...
:D
Hey Gulaab, when I saw your handle, I didn't even picture a rose. I, being the way that I am, automatically thought of gulaab jamuns. MMMmmmmm gulaab jamuns... here's to eating well :)
hairy_d, I'm a little heartbroken over here. I was hoping you really were that dahi eating pindoo, with any luck, from the Bihar/UP area (you sure as hell sound like one). *sigh*
Re: Abhi @ 73
Guru, you should run a graduate course on "honing the man-insticts", with dem BMIs, statistics on hip widths and all. :D
I totally agree- she's hot.
While I'm sure she's a lovely woman, I long for the days of Madhubala, Hema Malini and Nargis - those women were very beautiful; and having a low BMI didn't matter. I think the same can be said for the evolving standard in Hollywood - I don't think there's an actress as beautiful as Audrey Hepburn nor a guy as good looking as Gregory Peck. The standard these days is a sort of impish boy-man.
Also:
Yes, you did just kill your game.Abhi: YAY! A fellow anthropologist!
Eating disorders: Overeating and food addictions are also eating disorders, and this is something that is mostly ignored in public health.
Case in point of how effed up societal (and I mean US/UK in this case) perceptions are of body image:
A few days ago, I was called a "fat whore" (have I mentioned how much I love aggressive alcoholics?). I am 5'10" and 160 lbs soaking wet, size 8/10 pants (did I also mention that I'm incredibly self-absorbed? ;). I think I'm fine and healthy and all that. Apparently, I'm fat in the US. In the UK, I was told numerous times that I "don't have a weight problem" and when I travel to Bengaluru, my relatives make it their #1 priority to load as many calories as possible into my gastronomic experiences.
IF she is 5'8", 110 lbs and feeling healthy, then maybe she is fine and we can attribute that to genetics. However, if she is missing her monthly chum, is feeling dizzy, or her hair is thinning/falling out, she may have a serious health problem.
Oh-and the hair thing: my sister has a theory that South Indian aunties possess "lady fur" that accumulates over time. She is referring, of course, to that layer of individually invisible but collectively conspicuous hair that gathers on one's face.
Also, if I wanted to go into modeling with my stats, I would be ushered into the world of plus-size modeling.
Effed up, I tell ya!
*cough* - abhi, in order to be a pair, start thinking like a pair.... our offspring!
don't worry abhi. you can't kill that which is not alive.
Sweet, caring, nice Abhi does think like this. Animal Abhi however, trapped underneath societal constructs, is a different beast altogether. He only wants food, shelter, sex, and progeny :) (Abhi continues to kill his game in the span of one comment thread).
Ennis:
Why does everything you write have to be about your heterosexuality.? Why do you have to shove it in everyone's face?
manju: i think brokeback mountain may have something do with it...
or not.
...while making me laugh out loud, so it's for an awesomely worthy cause. ;)
D:
eeeeeew
I read this thread with Victoria Secret models parading just above the rim of my laptop. So... which should I get first? Implants or bulimia?
...now they're gonna show me what its like to be them. exciting!
I am somewhere between 5'3" and 5'4" (closer to 5'4", esp. with shoes on), and when I was in the 106-110 pound range, I was repeatedly called "too skinny" and told to "eat something." I also had to starve myself severely and exercise A LOT to be that skinny. Now, I eat very healthily (although, ahem, dorm food is perhaps the worst crap on Earth, eva, especially to this Indian girl), I'm rarely ever "hungry," and I don't get sick nearly as often as I did when I was 110 pounds or so. Of course, now that I've put on approx. 20-25 pounds (currently 131 pounds -- some of it due to Freshman 15, the rest due to actually EATING), I have repeatedly been called "fat" and told to "lose some weight" by the very people who were appalled when I took on my Oath of Starvation -- my parents. Just goes to show, it's never good enough in society. I personally think losing 10 pounds will do more harm than help, and I'm not willing to do it either (it's tough enough not starving while being a vegan, living in a DORM!), but once, just once, I'd like someone to look me in the eye and tell me that I don't need to lose any weight, instead of all this hemming and hawwing about "getting toned" and "fit." Just once.
Besides, I personally find girls with a little meat on them to be super attractive. Stick figures are soooo not my type.
Agree!
I'm watching it too and I'm planning on doing a huge UGGed out post about it tomorrow. WTF is that? What was that hideous Invasion of Mars shit at the opening? And then the whimsical Ran away with the Circus crap? These women are hot, have fabulous bodies, (yes and are ridiculously skinny except my girl Gisele) and this is the shit they put them in? Who the hell thunk of this ridiculous and crap collection?
Miss Great Britain here is not telling anyone to be thinner than they are. I thinks its crappy to make someone feel bad, even if they are not around, so other people feel ok. In school we had a few girls from india in our class, and they were naturally fairly slim. And they got nasty comments directed at them for no reason at all, as if they were responsible for how other women felt about their bodies. Tell the people who think being healthy weight or overweight to f off, but leave the skinny people alone.
If only i looked like that in ridiculous crap... ? The legs! thats all I want. Well, lets be honest, I'd be happy enough with their shoes =)
Well she lost one before. I say you go run and find it and then "search" for the other one. Hehehehe
I said most, Penelope.
Sahej - the tone is fairly respectful and self-aware. I, for one, stated that my comment was probably related to jealousy. Do I get honesty points? If you are a public figure, then public discussion of your figure may, indeed, figure. She is a beautiful girl. What you are noting is an aesthetic preference. People are allowed such things, even in polite society...
Gisele's not skinny?!
MD, I did note your tone and thought it kind of you to comment in such a way (to the extent my opinion matters to you). I just feel there is a thin line between what's going on in the thread and the more nasty comments that cross that line into making people feel bad for what is not there fault. I also agree with a commenter above; f the microdissection of any person's looks. F it to fing hell. :-)
Meant to say *are* usually overweight...
And Desai's winning thongs too. Thin and curvy, what a comboSo if everyone is all "OMFG HOTT!!!", you can't say "I don't think she is attractive"?
She is but she's curvier and has more meat in all the right places vs waif (ribs showing) thin.
there's a difference, though, between being hated on and being ridiculed. we all know which gets what. lets be honest about that.
Why do I think that natural breasts that size are unlikely on a woman 5'8" 110 lbs? More likely miniature goodyear blimps.
Neal, would you like it if people dissected your looks in that way?
Sahej - I agree: we shouldn't be rude. But, I'm sorry, her looks are clearly manipulated as womens' looks (and men) have been for generations in order to fit into a societal idea of beauty. Removing ribs, drinking arsenic to make your skin pale, binding your breasts, foot binding, corsets, all lead right into breast implants, and uber-thinness. She may be naturally thin, but her hair and makeup calculate a particular image. It is calculated. And there's nothing wrong with that. I love fashion and I love the idea of beauty. I don't think it's wrong to manipulate your body into an image in all cases. But, it is a manipulation and a calculation, particularly in the fashion/beauty pageant industry and you can be judged on that as much as a designer on his/her clothing designs.
Thanks for the respectful response :)
the difference between being hated on and ridiculed is what?
MD, I don't think Miss Great Britain, who seems to work in the fireworks industry, should bear the brunt (indirectly as it may be) for what I agree is pretty much a misery, jealousy, and delusion-creating industry (fashion media).
The respectful response to you is my pleasure
i am aghast that no one has commented on her eyes. STUNNING.
oh wait, i know why. we're desi. gorgeous eyes are ubiquitous =)
If I was in the business of promoting my looks? Uhm, that's kind of the point...
And in any case, I'm not saying that it's wrong to find her attractive, or that anyone else shouldn't think she's gorgeous. I'm not "dissecting" her either. I'm saying I personally don't think she's all that. The whole point of this post is that "this woman is attractive". If you disagree with any other post on this site it's pretty much expected that you'll talk about it (as long as you're respectful, etc...). Why should this be different?
I'm sorry her body is the reason why she won a crown, her body is her asset and is being flaunted. What do you suppose we talk about? Her mind? I respect your need to defend her but no one here is being rude to her or calling her names or being disrespectful. You seem to imply that the concerns that come up when a super skinny woman is lauded as a role mode are unimportant and somehow stem for some kind of hate from fat people! I think that is uncalled for.
I don't think the concern is for her health, the concern is that she is perpetuating a trend that values thinness over healthy weight or overweight.
To the point of her body and judging her, there are ways to appreciate her form that don't hurt feelings; its been done for centuries. Look into it?
You know, she is a grown woman. And she knows what she is doing, I presume. So, to not comment honestly is a bit like infantilizing her, isn't it? As if she is so fragile she can't handle a little criticism. Am I way off base here?
sahej -- the difference, put very simply, is that one is coveted and the other is exiled.
JOAT:
Why is Brazil the hegemon in the supermodeling industry?
MD,
I think the dissection of her body is off base, not productive to the "cause" of stopping the (cruel?) practice of judgment in the media and fashion regarding body size for women. Unless she were to somehow say "I'm the bomb because I'm skinny and anyone who is fatter than me is a stupid dummy head".
Anyway.
And I'm sure you will give us a reason to believe there is something wrong in doing that?
They look proportionate. She is beautiful, nothing about her body is misproportioned. A little push up bra goes a long long way. Todays bras don't even require breasts because they come with a size or two of breasts already in em.
JOAT,
see above for the reason I think thats wrong
Eyes. I don't need to look at eyes. I have eyes.
Espressa,
You think a skinny woman who may or may not herself want to be of a greater weight, is neccessarily happy with all the bullshit adulation she may get? I just think its not the right "target"
The water? They sure make em hot there! Brazil has some of the most aggressive recruiting houses in the world. Gisele, one of the famous one however is born there to Russian/German parents :-)
"don't hate be because i'm beautiful" syndrome?
Sahej: judgements are cruel and I respect what you are trying to do. But, somehow, it bothers me when women are treated as fragile creatures, incapable of taking hard knocks, victims to the end. I know that's not what you are trying to do - you just think discussing her figure doesn't help society have a more broad idea of beauty. I agree with that. But, being 'overprotective' is equally damaging to women I think. The gentle tone of most of the comments here is simply not beyond what I believe is reasonable discussion. If a woman can't even handle a little discussion about her when she is a public figure, then what kind of woman is she? A child who must be protected? I'm not talking about making fun of her in person, or treating her cruelly, but publicly discussing her role as a beauty queen who was explicitly judged on her looks and form. And she knew this. She joined a contest, of her own free will, which purposely made her an object of discussion. It seems almost Victorian to sheild her from any criticism, however mild. As if a woman is so weak she needs her betters (presumably men) to run to her rescue.....
espressa,
i don't think its quite like that. but people can be quite cruel to each other, and even people who seem to "have it all" may on closer look be hurting. consider as evidence, Maryiln Monroe.
MD,
I don't think thats what I am doing at all. I would love it if someone were to "defend" me as strongly as I would "defend" someone else. Be they a man or woman.
I think you're being a bit misreprenting of me. I don't think some of the comments were kind. Maybe respectfully submitted, but not kind. Just my opinion
Neal:
That was not the author's intent (to speak of myself in the 3rd person). I wished to laud her for her devotion to her mother, and raise her as a role model because of her complex career ambitions that went beyond simply the partying and having fun so common amongst today's youth.
Sahej - if this was a male bodybuilder, would it be unfair to discuss his physical attributes, as long as it was done in a polite fashion? We do this with Abhi and Vinod's forms all the time, at the secret bunker. The monkey have some very choice words to say on the subject.
Ennis,
Hahaaaaaaaaaa. Really cheap dude. Yes, I think male bodybuilders are strong and tough and don't need to be defended. But poor little women need big strong men to defend them.
Anyway. see ya.
Intersting. The Venezualans must be jealous. I asked b/c 4/6 supermodels from the VSFS are from there. Plus they're kinda brown, which is good news for the up and coming desi talent. I recall reading that back in the '70's you had to be blonde/blue-eyed to be on the cover of vogue (teigs, brinkley, etc.) and that raquel welch was consided too exotic back in the day and that anna wintour won't have j.lo on the cover of vogue for similar reasons. the times they are a changin.