Perception of Race and Skin Color in Pakistan
Many Pakistanis, and their Indian neighbors, are obsessed with the desire to be white. Women stay out of the sun, get whitening facials, and wear powder white makeup for their wedding pictures. The less sophisticated end up looking like ghosts with bright white faces in the photo albums. When parents are looking for a bride from their son, they will certainly be looking for a girl who is fair skinned. Pakistanis usually consider the Pashtuns and the Kashmiris to be among the most attractive of the local people. Both of these people groups have fairer skin than many other Pakistani peoples.
Women desire to be fair skinned for good reason, as it seems the majority of local men are more attracted to lighter skinned beauties. In Bangkok's red light district, there is an entire area catering to Pakistani, Indian, and Middle Eastern men. The women working there are not Thai, but Central Asian women with lighter skin. Combine this reality with Hollywood movies and pornography, and you end up with scores of Pakistani men who can only associate fair skinned women with prostitution and loose morals. Those Pakistanis who have lived and worked abroad in the West for longer periods of time know otherwise, but unfortunately the majority of the population has a strong association of white women as harlots.
On the other end of the pigment spectrum, darker skinned people can also have a hard time living in Pakistan. The words 'negro' and 'nigger' are commonly used to describe skin color, and they do not seem to set off alarm bells in anyone's heads. When Pakistanis use these words, they are usually only using them to refer to the color of someone's skin and should not be taken as an insult. In Pakistan, most of the upper class people have lighter skin, and many of the lowest caste have the darkest skin.
There is a strong system of caste in Pakistani society, even though the majority of the country adheres to Islam. Most families prefer to marry within their own caste and live with their own caste, or social group. Many people of the lowest socioeconomic class used to belong to the Hindu Dalit (untouchable) caste before converting to Christianity. Even after leaving the Hindu system, their caste stuck with them. There are even some middle class, educated families who refuse to allow 'black' Christians to work as cooks.
If you are a foreigner thinking of moving to Pakistan, it's best to have these perceptions in mind before you set your feet on the ground. If you have lighter skin, you can expect to have a lot of respect merely because of your skin color. If you're a white woman, it's best to dress and act modestly as you need to overcome the stereotype that white women are easy to go to bed with. If you have darker skin, stay confident in yourself and don't allow remarks on your skin color to bother you. The locals may drive you a bit crazy trying to offer you solutions to make your skin whiter.
If you're part of an interracial couple, be prepared to be gawked at and questioned. For the lighter skinned partner, people may openly ask you (in front of your spouse) why you married a dark skinned person. They are not asking you this to offend you, they are honestly confused because this makes little sense in the local culture. One friend confided to me that the first time he left the country and saw a white woman with a black man he was shocked. He couldn't imagine why the woman would choose to be with the darker skinned man. On the other hand, although at times you may feel uncomfortable, you have the opportunity to set an example to those around you and make a statement that color is truly only skin deep.
Published by Heather Carreiro
Heather is a freelance travel writer and editor. Her articles include travel tips, free ESL lesson plans, teacher training resources, and information about expatriate life in Pakistan. Learn more on her blog... View profile
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17 Comments
Post a CommentAmir is in denial. Just like in India, Pakistan is obsessed with fair skin. Its unfortunate because a large part of Pakistani society doesn't fit into the construction of fair skin equalling beauty.
My sister-in-law married a man from pakistan and his sister lives upstairs with 4 kids. Just recently one of the daughters who is 14 was going to go to the beach but then said no because she didn't want her skin to get dark. They also bleach their skin. Good article it was informitive. I think it has more to do with laboring class and non laboring class. I am white as you can be and my wife is Dominican and very dark. I work with people that are laborers and one of the girls of the above mentioned family was married to a Pakistani man who now lives in the same house. He works at a computer store. I probably could get him a job at docks doing manual labor but his mother in law would have nothing to do with it. It is a labor job. She would rather have him make 5 dollars an hour at the computer store than make 15 an hour working on trains. It is pretty funny and sad all at once. They have arranged the marrige for the older daughter and it will be funny to see for the next 2 daughters adn
In karachi, its very similar to Lahore if not more because of influx of migrants not only from India (who make up majority of the population with pashtuns being the second) but also from usually darker skinned countries like Bhutan,Bengladesh, Sri Lanka, and others. I think its lessening there--since in Karachi THERE IS NO MAJORITY LOOK-- but fair skin is still very popular due to media outlets, prominent politicians and personels (hailing from "noble" ancestry), and that whole bs of "if you are dark pakistani, then you are a converted hindu." I will be millionaire if I havent heard that 1000x times in either ny or karachi. IT's sad but it will fade.
Amir - very insightful comment about the reasons why people would want to be white. I think you're right on with the perception that darker skin = laboring class/working outside in the sun. I'm not sure how it is Karachi,as I've heard Karachi is much more cosmopolitan than Lahore, but here most of the domestic servants and lowest socioeconomic class have the darkest skin.
But good article though.
Have a good stay in pakistan :)
See its NOT the world's most dangerous country.
The only reason I included the entire CIA reference was to counter perceptions of pakistanis worshipping lighter skin while they are majority dark. That is so wrong, as ALOT of ethnicties, like you said, are light. I will say that Pakistanis, who do use fairness creams, have three motives: Fitting in with the local populations; keeping their skin fair to show their ancestry and show they are not of laboring or migrant clas and they come from turk/arab/persian/rajput background; or simply because of the belief fairness is better. SORRY IF YOU GOT MY MESSAGE WRONG
Amir- I've been in Pakistan for over three years and have worked with a variety of ethnic groups through my work in teacher training. I have many Pakistan friends of different ethnic backgrounds. The largest people group in Pakistan is the Punjabis, who typically have darker skin than other ethnic groups. The article represents the pervading attitudes about skin color in Lahore and other parts of Punjab. Pakistanis do vary from very light skin to very dark skin. In areas, such as Hunza, where the majority of people are from the same people group have have similar skin colors, skin color doesn't play as much of a role as it does in the Punjab. I'm not sure what logic there is in your point that CIA suspects people because they have lighter skin...
Whoa buddy, I wondered if you went to Pakistan, what CITY did you go to? Well, I hope you did even go to pakistan.
Or once again, like other writers, you believe if indians love fair skin, so too must pakistan then!
In karachi and Lahore, there are big things for fair skinned creams since alot of migrants from India came there to live after partition and were of darker color. They wanted to fit in.
How do I know?
I grew up in Karachi, I am of a pathani mixed family.
EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD IN KARACHI IS ANOTHER ETHNICITY--LITERALLY.
Karachi is often called the brazil of Pakistan like Lahore.
But asides from that, go to the north o south light skin doesnt matter. Pakistanis vary from the lightest skin to darkest skin.
DO YOU WONDER WHY THE AMERICAN CIA IS SUSPICIOUS OF PEOPLE IN FATA AND NWFP AND OTHER NORTHERN PARTS OF PAKISTAN?
Because people there look insanely western.
Also the average pakistani is of a fair olive tone anyways. well, I know I am.
But once aga
It's the exact same way in China!
I have heard of these types of views in India, but I was not aware that issues to do with race and skin colour were so prominent in Pakistan as well. I'm British Greek-Cypriot and have dark hair and olive skin with a white American husband, so I wonder how I would be treated in Pakistan? I'm actually often mistaken for Asian rather than European - even by Asian people!
Sophie