17 Ways 2016 Was A Massive "Fuck You" To Indian Beauty Standards

Hey, tired ideals of beauty, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

1. Five models walked the ramp at Lakmé Fashion Week to show that a woman's beauty isn't bound by age, gender, size, choice, or career.

Getty / Instagram

2. A curvy Instagrammer made headlines to show that yoga isn't limited to a size.

Dolly Singh

3. 14 women spoke about and celebrated their dark skin.

Priyadarshini Ravichandran / The Soup

Priyadarshini Ravichandran / The Soup

4. And young girls expressed why they loved their rich brown skin, and called out brands for implying that only fair women succeed in life.

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5. Vogue celebrated beauty in diversity by having a cover with models from all over South Asia.

Vogue

6. Lakmé Fashion Week held auditions for their first ever plus-sized fashion show.

Sumedh Natu / BuzzFeed

Sumedh Natu / BuzzFeed

7. Twitter was flooded with photos of South Indian beauty, as a reaction to all things "desi" being focused on North Indian beauty.

Twitter: @raphaelraj777

Twitter: @K0HIN00R

8. Navreet Josan, VJ Bani and other muscular beauties slammed all BS about muscular women not being beautiful and "feminine".

Navreet Josan

instagram.com

9. India got its first TV serial with a plus-size bahu as the lead.

ozee.com

10. Poet Naina Kataria wrote a viral poem about women's body hair, and what men don't know about them.

Naina Kataria

11. When Nike's "Da Da Ding" ad celebrated athletic, carefree, rebellious beauty.

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12. Actress Tannishtha Chatterje called out Comedy Nights Bachao on being incredibly shadeist during roasts, and now there are no roasts on the show anymore. 💅

Getty Images

13. Cosmopolitan India did a gorgeous photoshoot with curvy women.

Ashish Shah / Via Cosmopolitan India

14. And later in the year, they did a series of un-retouched photos of women embracing what society calls "imperfections".

Ashish Shah/ Cosmopolitan India

15. #UnfairAndLovely week was celebrated in March, where dark-skinned Indian (and other desi) women shared stunning selfies, proving beauty isn't monotone.

https://www.instagram.com/unfairandlovely_/

Instagram: @unfairandlovely_

16. Vanitha, one of South India's most popular magazines, stepped out of the cis model box and featured a trans model on its cover.

Twitter: @redditindia

17. And Dove India made a statement ad, dispelling the fair, thin beauty ideal in India.

Dove

"Isn't it strange that in a country of 631 million women, there is still only one face of beauty, when there is so much more to be admired?"