Skin Deep

A lot...and I must say that a LOT of newsprint has been dedicated to the Aishwarya and Abhishek issue. A dear friend has been crying hoarse on how Aishwarya is a manipulative b*tch and is an opportunistic female who has managed to seduce Abhishek.

For les ignorants, Aishwarya Rai is Miss World 1995 (if my history is correct) and often considered to be the female face of Indian cinema. On the other hand, Abhishek Bachchan is from the first family of Indian Cinema. The son of Amitabh Bachchan and the current Brad Pitt of Indian Cinema.
Anyone worth his/her salt would know this information. But what is baffling to most minds is that fact that Abhishek and Aishwarya are pairing up. This has been the topic of discussion in most of the print, parties and friendly discussions that I have been party to.
It is a well known fact that we Indians (me included here) have an opinion on everything...politics, cricket, religion, macro-economic situation of Russia and Luxembourg, movies...the list goes on. And most of the time, it is a very polarised, focused black-or-white with no grey kind of an opinion. They believe that they have the answer to Saurav's problems with the short ball and to current issue of reservations in the private domain.
The same is the case with the Ab-Ash issue. They have an opinion on whether they should get together or not, whether it would be a successful marriage or not, whether she is an opportunistic b*tch or not...the list is endless. Why for gods sake cant we leave them alone? They are adults. Let them take a decision for themselves.
One such discussion on the topic veered to the thought that Aish had mesmerised and seduced Abhishek and would end up ruining his life. The contention was that ALL men are the same! They do not think with their brains. My question: whoever contended that they do?The counter-agrument was that if a random survey were to be carried out, 8 out of 10 people would have named Sushmita Sen as far more sexier and seductive than Aishwarya Rai. The girls for some reason begged to differ. They said that while men may pay lip-service to this school of thought, given the chance, they would rather hitch a ride with Aish over Sushmita.
The discussion then took an interesting turn. The guys argued that it wasn't merely about the beauty per se, it was also about the person...the personality. At this, there was an audible snicker as the girls claimed that men are nothing but hypocrites! All of them! They will claim to appreciate inner beauty. Merely claim. Or so the girls contended.
As a member of the guy-contingent, i feel obliged to reply to this. Any guy who claims to be seeking inner beauty is either insane, out of this world or is simply not straight! Stay on with me here... If there is any inner beauty that he is seeking, it is the one inside her clothes! As hard-hitting as it may sound...it is the truth! It isn't subtle...and it isn't meant to be. Let me explain the same. The first impressions are what count in life. At every step of life. And this is no different. You are obviously attracted to an attractive person.It is human tendency. The same with the guys...the same it is with the girls. But how long will the attraction last? Not for long. The wrapper may be amazing! The advertising may have built an awesome brand image. But if the product is not good enough, the days will obviously be numbered. As with consumer items, the same is with life. The looks and attraction can get you only upto a point. After which, it is what he/she is as a person that matters. Not what he/she wears or what his/her vital statistics are! That is something that is so elementary, and yet missed often. Guys may go for the hottest babe around, but when it comes to settling down in life, there is more to it than merely oomph! Hence, you would hear of two classifications:
- The hot babe
- The one you take home to mom!
Give the guys some credit when it is due!
And for girls to claim that a guys thoughts can be skin deep is nothing short of hippocrisy itself!
If guys go for the looks and the oomph, the girls fall for power and money (sometimes both!). It is an unfortunate fact! The only difference here is that the guys are open about what they believe! While the girls dont!
Is it true love that 58 year old Salman Rushdie offers Padma Lakshmi? While I sure hope so...I guess not! Heard of Hugh Hefner? The septuagenarian owner of adult magazine Playboy has loads of gorgeous women by his side. Guess why? For he provides them with a chance to apprear on the center spread! And we are talking about accomplished ramp models here! I wouldn't know if he has been exceptionally endowed, but it would interesting to know the kind of true love that women seek from him. There are countless such examples and we can go on and on...
The essense of all this is that we live in an imperfect world. We are all human beings and have our own fallacies. We need to identify them and live with them. It is easy to hope and try to live in a chimeric world...where decisions are taken on merit. But in the real world, it is merely utopian to aspire for the same to happen. Afterall, we are mere mortals!

PS:I personally do not claim to be a holier than thou individual. Any frayed feelings are purely un-intentional.