Television culture and the beauty bias problem: an analysis of India’s postmillennial television serials

Abstract

This study aims to critically analyze the problem of the beauty bias prevalent in contemporary India with the help of popular postmillennial Hindi television serials. It begins with a review of literature on television’s social impact and then demonstrates how representations of women on Indian television have historically been deeply interwoven with hegemonic perceptions of appearance. It then examines as case studies five popular tele serials which, while trying to be forward-looking attempts at critiquing beauty norms, in actuality reinstate normative ideals of appearance or a globally dominant beauty myth. The findings of this study indicate that most so-called progressive serials implicitly endorse casual sexism against female bodies and/or subject the purportedly unattractive female protagonist to a life of injustices owing to her lack of proverbial good looks. Accordingly, this study claims that popular television dramas instead of empowering women often uphold the beauty bias so as to attain mass appeal along with sponsorships and high target rating points. Finally, this study hopes that its findings will provide inputs for television producers and policy makers who may not only prevent body shaming and appearance discrimination, but also promote nuanced and inclusive representations of female embodiment on Indian television.

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