I have never used a fairness cream, says actor Nandita Das

The actor illustrates her point. Pics/Sameer Markande

Good morning, didi!" chorused boys and girls in unison, standing up to greet actor Nandita Das. Das was "didi" to the Std IX students at Shiv Srushti School in Kurla East on Monday morning. She was the speaker at a programme held by Teach for India. Das headlined a session called: Unconscious Bias: Colourism and prejudices impacting children and adolescents.

Das started with asking the classroom, "Tell me what discrimination means?" When there was silence, she elaborated, "Do you know of a word called differentiate? We often hear statements like: you are very tall, you are short, you are rich, they are poor...these are differences. When we treat a person based on solely these differences as better or not so good, that is discrimination."

Labelling people

Das, who was effortless in her teacher role, explained that discrimination labels people and reduces them to one aspect, literally confining them to a box. Das spoke from personal experience as she said, "Sometimes, you will hear people say, she is so fair-skinned, like an actress. She is so dark-skinned, how can she be an actress?" She told her listeners, "The media would write in their papers, ‘the dark' or sometimes ‘the dusky' Nandita Das. They felt the need to qualify somehow. Yet dark or dusky is just one part of my identity. I love music, nature, I have a Masters in Social Work... These are part of my identity too. Labelling someone diminishes them." Das added, "The fairness industry is huge. Today we may not have creams that use ‘fair' in their name, but the aim is the same. I have never used a fairness cream."

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That hurts

Das prodded students to share their experiences. A student remarked, "I have been looked at differently because of my skin colour. My relative said, she is dark, look at her skin colour. It broke my heart. I stopped believing in myself because of these statements." Das seconded that angst stating, "It does more than just hurt. It makes you start believing you are different and lesser somehow."

Celebrate differences, she stressed

She said about herself, "A relative used to tell me when I was a child, you are too dark, do not play in the sun. I was advised to apply haldi (turmeric) on myself so that my ‘tan' will come off. When I was older, I used to retort: this is not my tan, I have no need of de-tanning. This is my skin, I have lived with it and will die with it."

Another student said, "I have had family members commenting: ‘you are fair but you do not look so good, your younger sister is dark... but despite that, she looks good. You are too fat, now you have become too thin.' I have realised, some people will comment no matter what. I have started responding stating, ‘I am happy my younger sister looks good... she is my sister after all'." That earned her a round of applause from the class.

Faith bias

A Muslim student then shared how she was chastised by relatives for dressing like someone from another community, as she wore jeans and T-shirts, and not salwar-kameez. That is when the interaction segued to religion, caste and gender discrimination. It could be that the girls were better communicators but it was important to note that it was more girls who spoke up about being judged for what they wore, their skin colour, or how they looked. Das egged on the boys, "The boys need to speak too. If they do not have direct experiences, I appeal to the boys to make a mental list about how their sisters are treated, how their mothers and fathers are treated."

Lessons learnt

In the end, Das, who had handled the class dexterously, had some lessons for her young audience. She wound up acknowledging the wisdom of children, "Adults do not like to admit that they are wrong, especially to children. I have a 12-year-old son and he, in fact, is my biggest teacher. He looks at the world through fresh eyes. Keep conversations about these prickly topics going. Being equal, just and fair is a lifelong effort. Do not be part of the problem, be part of the solution for a more equitable world."