Hussain, Mobeen orcid.org/0000-0001-8630-9540 (2021) Combining Global Expertise with Local Knowledge in Colonial India:Selling Ideals of Beauty and Health in Commodity Advertising (c. 1900–1949). South Asia: Journal of South Asia Studies. pp. 926-947. ISSN 0085-6401
Abstract
This article traces the evolution of branded commodity advertising and consumption from corporeal health concerns to the racialisation of beauty through skin-lightening cosmetics in late colonial India. It centres two empirical foci: the marketing of personal hygiene products to Indian markets, and their racialised and gendered consumption. This article argues that the imperial economy tapped into and commodified ideals of cleanliness, beauty and fairness through marketing—ideals that continue to pervade contemporary South Asian communities. Contrary to claims that multinational corporations permeated Indian markets after the economic liberalisation of the late 1980s, there is a much deeper genealogy to the racialised imperial economy operating in European colonies. This article also examines the phenomenological underpinnings of imperial whiteness in colonial encounters to demonstrate how certain commodities appealed to Indians as ‘modern’ consumers, as well as how middle-class Indians and local entrepreneurs became active participants in the demand for, consumption and production of personal hygiene commodities.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2021 The Author(s) |
Keywords: | Advertising,beauty,colonial India,commodities,consumption,hygiene,skin lightening,whiteness |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (York) > History (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 21 Mar 2025 10:40 |
Last Modified: | 27 Mar 2025 05:27 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1080/00856401.2021.1968599 |
Status: | Published |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/00856401.2021.1968599 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:224697 |
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Description: Combining Global Expertise with Local Knowledge in Colonial India Selling Ideals of Beauty and Health in Commodity Advertising c. 1900 1949
Licence: CC-BY-NC-ND 2.5