The Cult of Perfection

“Can you see those awful stretch marks on Malaika's stomach? What's the point of looking so good in a dress if your skin looks like that under it," a bottle blonde stranger in a leopard print jumpsuit whispered conspiratorially to me.

I was at a party in Mumbai, with a mad amalgam of artists,
designers, bankers, filmmakers, businessmen and fashionistas in attendance. With Judith Leibers clutched tightly against Hervé Léger bandage dresses and Louboutin-clad feet being crossed, what was making the evening a little surreal was the free flowing Bollinger, the heady mix of cocktails and the tiny white pills that promised happiness.

It was then that I was accosted by what seemed like a big cat on the prowl who had decided to air her views on an unsuspecting guest's body. This was typical at these parties where people you barely knew think it is acceptable to sidle up to you and comment on how you and others look. They even manage to slip in a tone of concern. If, God forbid, your brow gets furrowed, they will touch your forehead and click their tongues vexedly (which, thanks to Botox, is now the only means they have to show disapproval) and say, “why don't you get rid of these lines darling, I know a fabulous guy."

The extent of Commenting unfavourably on people's appearances has now become de rigueur. It has reached the point that the social expectation is that even lay people have to always be well turned out and perfectly coiffured. Their nails have to be buffed till they shine and not an extra inch of fat should be on display. Botox and fillers should banish age and no cowardice should be exhibited at the idea of underarm surgery so the sweat ring daren't appear on that couture dress.

The pressure to look good constantly has gotten so bad that many celebrities and socialites will just not step out of their homes without makeup, a blow dry and a designer outfit on, even if they are just running errands.

India is still a far cry from Hollywood where publications like The National Enquirer or The Star pay photographers $2 million to catch a celebrity wearing sweat pants, with a tyre of fat or a zit on display. In fact, international A-listers are so paranoid about being caught off-guard that Victoria Beckham apparently once said that she wakes up three hours before she takes her children to school to do her hair, makeup, clothes and accessories. Just so she can look the part for the paparazzi when she drops the kids off at the school gate.

But between Facebook, Twitter, blogging and even the mobile phone camera, the chance of catching an Indian celebrity unawares is high. It doesn't help that Indian websites and blogs like High Heel Confidential and Miss Malini can be relentless in their criticism and fashion policing.

Delhi-based Kalyani Saha, vice president, marketing and communications, Christian Dior, says she feels the heat too. “I have been on best dressed and most stylish lists for so many years now that you begin to feel like you have to live up to it 24-7," she says.

This new cult of perfection didn't exist until five years ago. Medi-spas offering all kinds of nips and tucks, non-surgical facelifts and spot fat reduction have proliferated all over the country. Celebrity image consultants, stylists and personal trainers now make far more money than bankers, accountants and lawyers. It is a sign of our times that dieticians now drive the 7-series BMWs and are better known than many of our politicians.

Says Geeta Rao, beauty director of Vogue magazine, “The Indian concept of beauty and body image has undergone a complete change. We are buying into a thinner, taller, less buxom silhouette. Western images of models and actresses have influenced our perception of what is beautiful. Earlier, people were far more accepting of their natural flaws. Now, if someone has an issue with a particular feature or a body part, they are willing to fix it via cosmetic or surgical intervention. Everyone wants to look good."

But fashion photographer Colston Julian thinks it's about time that celebrities understood how to dress well. “You cannot wear Zara and H&M to red carpet events. Those are high street brands. Even mid-level wannabe models and actresses have understood this and are dressing in Armani, Dior and D&G. I see a lot of fakes though and it's so embarrassing because you can tell. Celebs will carry a fake LV bag or Omega watch. Fake shoes are also a big trend. The peer pressure to wear brands is ridiculous," he says.

Consequently, many celebrities dress very carefully when they know photographers will be present. Saha is known for her immaculate dress sense, but even she has on occasion borne the brunt of blogger sarcasm. “I love High Heel Confidential. They know their job and their fashion but what is hilarious and very insightful are the comments from people who follow this site. I am criticised for some hat I am wearing or a clutch I am carrying. When I know I'm going to be photographed, I dress for these websites these days. And if I make a faux pas now I just make it into a trend," she laughs.

What Saha calls innocent banter is actually ruthless commentary. Blogs like Miss Malini and fashion magazines have also been criticised for putting pressure on celebrities to not repeat clothes, handbags and shoes. “If some Page 3 type wears the same sandals to two events, the poor girl is made out to be a fashion catastrophe," says fashion and advertising photographer Atul Kasbekar.

TV and media personality Pooja Bedi says, “A lot of people feel stressed about not wearing the same outfit to multiple events or lending clothes to siblings because the websites publish images saying, ‘look who wore her sister's clothes'. It's ridiculous to buy something for one-time utility. Letting these blogs get to you is a huge cost to your personal, financial and emotional well being."

What is really ironic is that even the usually self-assured give in to attacks of self-doubt because of the pressure. Anaita Shroff Adajania is the fashion director of Vogue India, as well as a stylist to stars like Hrithik Roshan, Bipasha Basu, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Yet, when she first accepted the job at Vogue, she found herself feeling the pressure to look a certain way. “Vogue is an institution and I struggled a bit to play and look the part, especially when I went to fashion shows abroad and everyone was carrying the right bag and was in labels from head to toe," she says.

It took advice from an unexpected quarter for Adajania to realise that the important thing was to be true to herself. “Tarun Tahiliani told me, ‘Don't try to be someone you're not. Be who you are.' And I find myself going back to that a lot."

Adajania refuses to let the pressure to look beautiful get to her, but she admits to not being averse to liposuction. “I love natural beauty, love natural flaws and am genuinely bored by people looking alike because they are all so Botoxed. Botox can become like a disease. So much so, that people eventually don't even look like the celebrity you fell in love with. No one admits it but many do some form of surgical or non-surgical intervention to fight age or improve their features. Personally, I wouldn't touch my face, it's too sacred, but if someone promised me washboard abs through lippo, I'd say, bring it on."

Many socialites feel the same way and most have promised themselves a little surgery to fight the onslaught of gravity. One was fairly candid about her many sojourns to surgeons who have promised her perkier breasts, slimmer arms and a flat stomach. “But my friends say, just buy the best underwear and Spanx money can buy and sub kuch apne aap khada rahega," she says optimistically.

With people willing to do whatever it takes to keep age firmly in check, even at the cost of losing the expression on their face, Botox has come in for severe criticism. Delhi-based celebrity cosmetic dermatologist Dr Chiranjiv Chhabra, however, defends the injectable protein, saying administering Botox and fillers is an art form. “Sometimes celebrities can be very stubborn about how much they want injected. I always ask them if they want their lines eradicated or softened. If we put about 25 units of Botox around the eyes, it looks very natural. The problem is, stars are so insecure about their lines showing that they want 40-50 units injected and so they end up looking expressionless." She runs the Skin Alive clinics in Delhi and says most of the top Bollywood actress and many of the actors are on her patient list.