We’re in the 21st century but even today, discrimination and stereotyping haven’t come to an end. Yes, the face of stereotyping and discrimination may have changed but it still continues to exist. Being a big city girl for the longest time, I haven’t witnessed any discrimination based on caste or religion but I have been stereotyped and judged time and again. And women are usually the ones who face the brunt of it. While we all speak about women’s rights and empowerment and stand against body-shaming and beauty standards but truth be told, they still exist and continue to trouble us. TBH, beauty standards are the worst. Women are almost always silently told that they should fade away post-30s. From skincare brands to healthcare brands, most portray women in their 30s as old and discriminate against them and there’s even a term for this form of stereotyping and discrimination, ageism.
In a recent tweet, a user pointed out how women think that they’re supposed to “fade into the background” as they cross 30. The user went on to highlight that women are never irrelevant or unworthy while adding that we do not come with an expiry date. Check out this tweet.
Honestly, I agree. As a woman, we’ve been told to start taking care of our skin in our 30s and start “acting our age” and it’s heartbreaking how crossing 30 affects women and makes them feel worthless, especially when it comes to beauty or romance. Our beauty, love life or our body does not come with an expiry date. Women do not come with an expiry date and crossing our 30 does not make us old or irrelevant.
Also Read: Designer Vera Wang Calls Out ‘Ageism,’ Says “Never Thought To Preserve Youth In An Obsessive Way.” Bilkul Sahi
India’s most controversial reality show, Bigg Boss has been making headlines over the last few years for discriminating against several contestants. In Bigg Boss 14, Shamita Shetty was repeatedly age-shamed and it took social media by storm as people came out to protest against ageism. Even in the ongoing Bigg Boss 16, contestant Archana Gautam was age-shamed which was highlighted by Twitterati and the media.
While we have been taught to tone things down and look and act our age as soon as we hit 30 and be mature, it’s time to unlearn that and understand that we can be who we want to be irrespective of our age. It is, after all, just a number.