Beauty is skin deep!

Don't we look bright and happy!

We've heard this since we were born - beauty is only skin deep! Concentrate on your inner self...be a nice person...don't pay attention to your outer self...study hard...be successful and what have you! Be a good wife and mother instead of spending too much time being pretty, is my favourite. Because even though I've heard this a lot myself, I don't know how the two are mutually exclusive! My mom is a great mother! She is everything a mother should be, including beautiful. My earliest memories of her are not of "maa ke haath ka khaana", but of her in a blue chiffon saree, bouffant and pearls, looking absolutely enchanting! And being beautiful never stopped her from being a good person, wife or mother! She also defied that belief that no one likes pretty girls because she pretty much topped the charts there too!

But this isn't about my mother! It is about the argument that outer beauty is shallow! I, of course, disagree! Remember that time when our moms dressed up in beautiful sarees and our dads wore suits! You don't see that anymore (I myself am usually to be found in disreputable shorts, sans make up, hair in pony tail, scowl in place). Everyone says people in Delhi and Chandigarh are really good looking as compared to the ones in Bombay! I say no! We come from the same stock. The difference is that they take care of their appearance (though even I wonder about the blow dried hair and red lipstick in the gym), and a lot of us don't. In face some of us dislike the idea of dressing up so much that we end up sloppy. And when was the last time you were attracted to someone who looked like they had crawled out of a tree?

Which one would you rather speak to?

Proof - at the last Footloose event, everyone dressed up and it was worth it! The men were dapper in their suits and the women were gorgeous! I haven't seen so many attractive people in one room in a long time :) I've known all these people before and they just looked different. And that's what brought this on!

My point is, inner beauty is great, but no one is going to discover it until the outside is presentable. There, at the risk of being politically incorrect, I said it!!! Go ahead, shoot me!

See the difference?

And being presentable doesn't take too much effort. Most Indian women are blessed with good features and bone structure and skin. And we do have good hair! So that's 4 great things about all of us. And what nature didn't give us, make up will! It's just about well fitting clothes (you don't need to have 7 cupboards full), shoes that are comfortable (haven't we laughed at women tottering in heels they can't carry off), clean hair and subtle make up! And a great grooming adviser (which could well be your friends). We've all seen enough before and after pictures to know the magic of styling and ugly ducklings can be swans with the right stuff. So go ahead. Invest in a kajal and a lipstick. If you want to do more, even better! Most make up brands have make overs at malls. Go and get one. See how they do it, come home and practice. Or take a course from some of these brands. Make it fun! Invite your friends and have a blast with make up. Take pictures to see if you got it right. Do what you must, but don't knock the power of grooming and make up and for God's sake don't land up everywhere looking washed out! Believe your mother when she says you look like an urchin and change it! (My mom has made a career out of calling me that).

So I have learned the art of make up, invested in a good hair cut, grown my nails and developed a positive attitude! Knowing that I'm looking presentable also gives me a lot of confidence. And I smile a lot (nothing works better than that).

Yup! I smile too much!!

So go on, learn the art, get that attitude, draw the cheek bones and the cupid's bow mouth, (remember, the idea is to enhance, not practice oil painting on your face) polish that smile and celebrate being a woman! It's not shallow and above all, You deserve it!