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Obsession with size
zero RAT RACE TO GET THE PERFECT SIZE
INTRODUCTION
Fashion models have never really been admired for curves. Celebrities
like Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell, Brigitte Bardot, etc were celebrated
for their curves but the models who appeared in Vogue and Harpers
even in the 1930s and 40s were the same size as models today
In the 60s you had Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton.
The trend for thin models is nothing new - since at least the 1930s designer samples have come in the same size
Designers have always shown interest in structured body type and
never the curves.
But this inclination has led to some serious issues in the fashion industry
and brought an ugly face of this otherwise very glamourous industry.
SECONDARY RESEARCH
Most runway models meet the body mass index criteria for anorexia, according to an editorial pictorial in the January issue of PLUS Model magazine.
Twenty years ago, the average fashion model weighed 8 percent less than the average woman. Today, she weighs 23 percent less.
Plus-size models have shrunk too. A decade ago, plus-size models averaged between size 12 and size 18. Today, the majority of plus-size models an agency boards are between size 6 and size 14.
The mortality rate associated with anorexia is 12 times higher than the death rate associated with all causes of death for females 15-24 years old.
8% 23%
Kate Dillon developed anorexia as a preteen when classmates teased her about her weight and continued to starve herself while establishing a career as a model. She says she equated thinness with happiness and with having friends. As time went on, though, she became more and more depressed and began suffering anxiety attacks. She was neither healthy nor happy. So she sought help, recovered from her eating disorder and went on to work as a plus-sized model (wearing a size 14, which, by the way, is the average size worn by women in the U.S.).
Crystal Renn is another model that struggled with anorexia, got help and went on to continue to work as a model wearing larger sizes. She says she wants to be known for her work, not for her size. She also says she now believes being healthy is more important than being a certain size. She hopes to design a clothing line “with body diversity in mind,” with clothing for people of all shapes and sizes.
Supermodel Tyra Banks has spoken out against the fashion industry’s encouragement of unhealthily thin models and has refused to starve herself in order to get work. She’s had a very successful career at a healthy weight. She now mentors other models, encouraging them not to sacrifice their health for a
Kate Dillon before after
Crystal Renn before after
STAKEHOLDERS
ESTABLISHED MODELS
ASPIRING MODELS
FASHION HOUSES
FASHIONSHOW ORGANISERS
STYLISTS
SELECTION BODY
FASHION JOURNALISTS
FASHION ICONS
MAGAZINE EDITORS
FASHION PHOTOGRAPHERS
DIETITIAN
PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES
MEDIA
Methodology
Identifying the key stakeholders
Locating the main stakeholders
Telephonic interview with stakeholders outside Ahmedabad
Personal interview with the others
Unstructured interview
SYSTEM
Mapping
Anju Modi (FDCI)
Leno (Model)
Nidhi Govindam (Model)
Shivali Padmanabh (Victim)
Sima Shah (Dietician)
PROBLEM LEVELS DEATHS
Intake of heavy Drugs
Models made to fit garments not other way
round
More dieting to stay in the business
Good Fashion houses preference for size 0 models
Objectification of Models
Barbaric marketing strategy
Intake of drugs in Young Models
The relation of beauty with leanness
Development of negative body image in women
KEY FINDINGS
The biggest question is why are slim and tall models always
preferred over curves?
To this Anju Modi a renowned fashion designer and an FDCI member says;
“ The main aim of fashion shows is advertising their garments. So it has to
have an impact on the audiences. The key ingredients of a garment are its
fall, silhouette, structure etc. A slim and tall model amplifies the beauty of the garment as it falls properly and gives the desired structure to it.”
She adds,” though the sizing factor is fairly normal in India i.e 35-25-35 as
compared to outside, still certain models tend to cross the lines in order to
get better in this field”
Success
Better job
Slim figure
Dieting
Common Notion
Dieting
Slim figure
Better job opportunities
Zoomed in Case
Dieting
Slim figure
Better job
opportunities
Health hazards
smoking
drugs
Health hazards
Excessive dieting
To stay in business
Negative image for
curves
depression
money
No treatment
deaths
Other issues
Mass culture
Wrong influence
Zooming out
Interviewing a few models gives a better insight of the fashion industry. One
gets to know the extend to which the models go to keep in shape. From
eating tissues to cotton balls, its all very common. Some even resort to bulimia.
Ketholeno Kense
“Even though its not that stringent in
India, you still have to follow the norms,
as to workout and diet if you want to
stay in business. You work all day long in
shoots and tend to get dizzy now and
then, but that’s just part and parcel of
this job”’
She also adds,“ there are times when
I used to skip meals for days to get
ready for a big shoots and end up in
a hospital”
Nidhi Govindan
Nidhi govindan a Italian based model explains how
she couldn’t get a shoot because of her size, she
says-
“ I was approached by a French company for a
photoshoot. Their only problem was the size they
wanted. They were looking for an Asian face but
didn’t wanted to wager with the size. They even
asked me to shed a few pounds even though when
I weighted like 80lbs(40kgs)”
She adds, ”its not that stringent in India though, they
just want flesh in the right areas, no one wants you
to be flat……here face value is more important
rather than the garment itself”
Interviewing a few aspiring models or those inspired by this culture we see
the effect of media on a larger scale.
Anushree a NIFT student has to say-
“ I don’t get this size zero bullshit, its just a matter of opinion for ones
body. Being in shape is one thing and starving yourself is another. I eat
at my will but also workout. Though I don’t aspire to be a model but
being in shape is a must for me, it’s a choice not a necessity”
Tanya Sharma
“ I am a bit inclined to go in this field and I'm working
towards it. Though I still don’t diet that much but I am
ready for it. Its not that I don’t like curves but its just that I
find slim toned body much more attractive and agile.
Curves make you look a slob and I'm not that”
Agreya Gandhi
“though im not a big size zero enthusiast, but still I or
say anyone is influenced by this mass culture. The
first picture that comes to ones mind of a model, is
of a thin, tanned bikini figure. We have been
accustomed to think in that way and that is where
the problem lies”
A major effect of this was seen in a case when a student of PDPU had to be
hospitalized for 3 days as she went through a serious diet just loose some
weight.
Shivali Padmanabh(victim) a 20 years old says that,
“ I thought i was too fat, and also people around me are skinny & size zero. So
more over they influenced me. I never wanted to do modelling. But of course
I wanted to look good and presentable. I used to follow a very strict diet. I
couldn't consume too much calorie a day, like I could just have one slice of
pizza in a month. I even resorted to bullming at times. And this made my
stomach reduced its capacity to fill in. That made me puke every time I had
something”
Sima Shah the doctor that attended Shivali also a dietician says that it’s a
growing trend nowadays. 2-3 such cases come each day of girls fainting
due to low blood pressure. She adds,
” what girls now days see is the slim body of some actress or model, what
they don’t see is the amount of work and time that goes in it. They just
want instant results and thus such things happen. Youngsters in the age
group of 12-25 years are using diet pills, fat burners, fasting, resorting to
self-induced vomiting etc. in order to stay slim and look attractive. They
are deeply influenced by modern lifestyles together with ubiquitous show
of a perfect 10 figure and airbrushed faces in advertisements & pictures of
ramp models, film/sports personalities etc. in newspapers, magazines etc”
Strength
1.Medical system
2.laws
Weakness
1.Mass culture trend
2.Lack of confidence
Opportunity
1.Breaking the stereotype
2. campaigns
Threats
1. Fashion
houses
2. Media
S
W
O
T
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