From the Honey Rose case to a tragic suicide over complexion in Malappuram, body shaming continues to cast a shadow in an era that celebrates body positivity. Dr Mohan Roy, Head of Psychiatry at Kollam Medical College, joins us on News Brake to discuss the psychological toll of body shaming.
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[00:00:00] Too fat, too skinny, too short, too dark. The Kerala High Court recently said that remarks about a person's body or mind must be avoided at all costs. The court was considering the bail application of a popular businessman, Bobby Chemannur, in a sexual harassment case filed by actor Honeyrose. On the very same day, a 19-year-old woman from Malapuram in Kerala was found hanging at her husband's residence.
[00:00:30] The reason for her suicide was allegedly continued criticism from her husband and family about her complexion. So why does body shaming remain so deeply ingrained in society, in an era that champions body positivity? Hi and welcome to News Brake. This is Harita Benjamin and today we are joined by Dr Mohan Roy.
[00:00:59] To discuss body positivity, its importance and the damaging effects of body shaming. Dr Mohan is the professor and head of department psychiatry at the Kullam Medical College. Welcome to the show doctor. Thank you. So let's first talk about the Malapuram incident. Can body shaming actually drive a person to take such an extreme step?
[00:01:23] From your experience, what psychological impact does it have on individuals, especially the younger adults and teenagers? See, body shaming has so much psychological issues. One is the law of self-dustiny. Immediately after hearing such a shame, the person loses his sense of self-dustiny. It becomes law. Right.
[00:01:47] And then they feel inadequate. They feel that their bodies are unattractive and worthless. In an era where you are sort of hyper-hyping the positive body structures. Positive body structures, when we discuss, that's a biastic concept. Right. What you see as a positive body structure is something which is portrayed mainly by media, which has much influence among our youngsters and even young adults and even elderly people.
[00:02:16] So, when they hear this, they feel inadequate. They feel unattractive and worthless. And then anxiety and depression can set in. Right. Once they hear that, okay, I'm not like at par with others or something like that, they become anxious and on the long run they can feel depressed.
[00:02:36] They isolate them from the crowd. They withdraw themselves and some even at the initial stages, it's not properly addressed, develop suicidal thoughts. Right. They feel humiliated. They feel that kind of no end, they're worthless. And they then develop a negative body image of themselves.
[00:02:57] They compare their body shapes with others and they look around people and when they feel that their bodies are not as much as good compared to the others. Like as portrayed by media or something like that, they definitely feel inadequate. It leads to self-glossing, can lead to disordered eating. Once they feel that their body shapes are not proportionate, it can affect their eating behavior,
[00:03:22] which can ultimately even lead to nutritional deficiencies or eating. They won't seek medical care and treatment. I mean, they may feel that even after, there are even, unfortunately, there are even doctors who say, but once you say that one is chubby or fat or something like that, that will deter the person from seeking medical help. Right. And there are any number of studies that say that they face discrimination in healthcare, employment and education.
[00:03:53] And even when they decide to do some exercises, they may fear the fact that others may shame them because they are exercising and they may pass comments from them. Right. And you need to have a family support when you are dealing with this person. You need to promote a positive family environment. You should avoid criticism. Okay. So…
[00:04:16] You should create a model of positive behavior and offer emotional support, validate their feelings, encourage healthy habits. So, as a family, you need to do so many things before this person gets back to their problem. Okay. So, now coming to the family point which you were just mentioning. Actually, in the Malapuram case, the family had said that they were aware that the girl was going through a critical phase
[00:04:44] because the teachers had informed them that she is being harassed by the husband's family due to the complexion. So, how important is a family when it comes to shaping and destroying self-esteem? Because we all have had this experience of, you know, say a distant uncle who remarks about your weight or an aunt who comes and says how your complexion is very different from your cousin or your sister. Right.
[00:05:09] So, how can these families ensure that they are supporting, you know, a person and boost? How do they boost the confidence of their child or the family member? And also the early warning signs, right? You should know when your child is going into depression or if they are being visibly affected by these comments. So, could you also tell about what warning signs they should look out for?
[00:05:35] Yeah, warning signs like the person may be anxious, they may not stop eating suddenly but their nutritional intake may come down. They may not engage in family activities. Correct. They may be lonely, they may be withdrawn, there may be problems in their studies. So, whenever you see such a situation or whenever you see an adolescent or an adult in your home, just talk with them. Ask them what's happening to them.
[00:06:05] As a family, what you can do is, one is promoting a positive environment. Like, it should start from the family. Right. The body positivity approach should start from the family. They should avoid criticism. They should be afraid from making negative demands about the person's appearance in their body. Even in a jockeying manner, you're not supposed to say that. You can say that it's a crime. And then they should model a positive behavior. They should show a healthy attitude towards body shape.
[00:06:34] They should avoid physical criticism and they should more highlight on health aspects rather than body structure. Right. Then, once you realize that your adolescent or the adult is going through this, they should offer emotional support. They should do something which you call as active listening. Active listening is like when you make them feel that you are actively engaging in a conversation with them. You encourage open conversations about their feelings and it's non-judgmental. Right.
[00:07:04] And then you validate their feelings. When they say that I'm suffering from something, never say that no, it's all in your brain. You're just thinking. You're just overthinking. Understood. Tell them that you understand them. Acknowledge their struggle. Never say that no emotion is insignificant. So never say that it's significant. You validate their feelings. Then, you should encourage healthy habits without the person. One thing that usually happens with our families when they face a situation, they will ask them to stop exercising.
[00:07:34] And what's the purpose of exercise? They'll say that once they exercise, your shape will improve. No. It should not be the way. They should promote the culture of balanced meals and physical activities for a healthy body, for the healthy benefits. Not merely for the weight loss. Then, the family should educate them and the family should educate the members also as the principal. You should learn about body weight issues, eating disorders, their underlying causes.
[00:08:02] So you can approach the thing in a more scientific way. And you should challenge the unrealistic standards, right? You should tell them that, okay, you're doing this much. You're studying. You have other things. So don't go for the unrealistic expectations. And then, you should encourage them to focus on their qualities. Maybe the person is intelligent. That person has creativity. The person is so kind. He's empathetic.
[00:08:27] So you should support those things and support more in terms of that. And then, whenever in doubt, you should take them to a mental health professional. The problem is that most youngsters and their families, once they get the name of a mental health professional, there is a lot of stigma. Yeah, there is a taboo and a stigma attached to taking a person to a psychiatrist or a psychologist. Yes. So, yeah, that is, I think, still a problem. You should take them to a mental health professional.
[00:08:55] And you should also celebrate non-physical achievements, like their character, their other good qualities. They should be, like, you should celebrate the non-physical achievements and they should provide reassurance. Like the family should be with them. They should provide reassurance. Tell them that it's not the end of the world. It's actually a beginning. And they should tell them that it's their self-worth that matches and not the body appearance. Understood.
[00:09:22] So I think, as you said, that constant need for comparing your child or your family member to unrealistic standards is something which we should stop and, you know, maybe lend them a year and motivate them for the qualities which are existing in them. So I think that's a valid point. Yeah. But let's move on to the larger society. So that is something which is beyond your control, right?
[00:09:47] Now, if you're looking at Bobby Chamonur's case and you're looking at the social media comments and the different comments which are coming on general media, we can see that people are justifying him and even glorifying him. Because one of the common justifications which has come about is that what is new in a comment that is body shaming a woman? There's nothing new about it. That has always been the case. And just take it and, you know, swallow the bitter pill.
[00:10:14] So that is something which I have observed in, you know, the different comments which have been coming on social media. So how do cultural and societal standards influence the prevalence of body shaming? And where does it stop? How can we, you know, prevent this? As we know, culture and society is the extension of family. Right. Society is composed of many families.
[00:10:37] So whatever is there in the family will definitely go to the society and that actually will come back as culture into the family. So, Professor Wiley pointed out, cultural and societal standards are very significant. It's shaping the attitude of body image. That contributes to body shaming. Like society has set some beauty standards. Cultural norms even used to go through the various pictures of like all the beauty trees and all that.
[00:11:05] The paintings and all that particular body structure. Like, for example, tingers in the trend culture or a curvy or serious and others. So these standards actually marginalize bodies that deviate from the norm. What is norm? Normals were set by the society. And when somebody feels that my shape is not in tune with the norm, they have problems. Then there is a problem of media representation. Yeah.
[00:11:32] Media actually represent bodies in such a way that they portray some bodies as more beautiful. Like, like, narrow or brown scissors or something like that. These are unrealistic expectations. And these put a lot of pressure on our youngsters who constantly, like, move with the social media. And whenever they see, they're posting in social media and they're getting comments. And even using filters, you can change your skin tone and color.
[00:12:01] But the problem is that when others see that, when a person who has a problem goes through these things, they have problems. And then about the gender roles. Like, actually there is a gender discrimination in this system. Because women are more subjected to structure of beauty standards. Right, right. Society emphasizes on thinness, youth, and perfect body structures. So it puts a lot of pressure on them. And men also, because nowadays, it's not that you should look muscular and sick. You should have at least two or four acts.
[00:12:31] So it also puts a lot of pressure on them. So rather than highlighting the healthier bodies, they are sort of highlighting more of the sculpted bodies. And never forget the issue with non-binary individuals. These are people who are outside the traditional gender roles. They experience more nor is any. Primarily, they face so much discrimination and then they, on added to that, they face these problems.
[00:12:56] And social media platforms, you know, they amplify the unrelipped beauty ideals through a three-set filter, society and the curated conduct. They create a comparison culture. And there are cultural traditions and practices. Like body size is associated with wealth, fertility or health. Like there are some Western societies where larger bodies are either unhealthy or lazy. And not like in our setting. So there also has a cultural and ethnic understanding.
[00:13:26] And definitely family dynamics, which as we discussed earlier, which leads to the critical comments and definitely the social economic factors are important. Because socio-economic disparities and these regularities can affect the access to healthy food and exercise, you know, the cost of a one-year gym. So that can also lead to this fact. There are even religious and moral judgments as well.
[00:13:56] And along with this, you need to know about peer pressure and bullying. Because as a youngster or a young adult, you are constantly bombarded by views and opinion about how beauty is being in your college or in your school. It's like it leads to a lot of fear. And then some bullying also. Even if you go online and post some tricks, the other person thinks that your body shape is not conforming to the standards,
[00:14:24] like said by them, you definitely suffer bullying, which also leads to so many psychological issues. Right. So now there has been a movement in direction of body positivity, right? We've seen that on social media. But obviously the content is not as much as the body shaming. It's not reached. But then has it in any way contributed to nullifying or, you know, reducing the effects of body shaming? What is your observation on that regard?
[00:14:51] Because you might be having different clients who are coming to you and talking to you. So have you seen that influence them or generally? Actually, social media is a double-disk weapon. Right. Let me say that social media has so many disadvantages. It has its advantages, right? The body positivity movement was actually started by social media and it was able to create such a big view and cry,
[00:15:19] basically because it was actually useful. Social media is a platform to counter this. Understood, yeah. Then social media influencers and creators, like there are social media influencers and content creators who are diverse in their culture and diverse in their body shapes. They also helped a lot in addressing this issue.
[00:15:41] And never so, that social media is an awareness tool through which you can create so many awareness campaigns to combat this. Yeah. And you can even consider starting a support community for the same. And social media influencers actually challenged the existing mutinums and primarily we believe what we should be able to reach the results or hit because of the social media. Right. There are arguments in favour and taking. Yeah.
[00:16:08] So, never underestimate the power of social media in helping the person to solve it. Right, right. So, now let's move on to the legal aspects and moving forward, what are the steps that survivors or victims could take? One is, you know, let's look at Honey Rose's case, which was dealt with surprising speed because that's not the case for normal cases. Right. But what legal recourse is available for people who are being targeted, you know, other than celebrities?
[00:16:38] And do you think pursuing legal action will actually keep netizens and others in check because Honey Rose's case will set an example. So, will that prevent, you know, people who are posting negative comments from doing that? Will that be any kind of deterrence for them? I think action in Honey Rose can be taken as a model. Right.
[00:17:00] If it is happening in a family, as you are aware, section 498 of Indian Pedal Court addresses the issue of cruelty inflicted upon married women by their husbands. And the punishment, the definition of cruelty, it's well written in that. The imprisonment of up to three years and five, the husbands or the relatives of husbands. And the court has time and again issued guidelines to how to go about this. They have defined relatives very clearly.
[00:17:30] The cases are being registered and definitely has an impact on this. Section 509 of Indian Penal Court also deals with the same thing. Here also, the Act covers the atrocities against women. Punishment is up to three years and five. Even if you make a comment against a woman or you show a gesture of a sexually suggestive man, it can be booked. Plus, there are laws associated with cybersecurity.
[00:17:58] The problem is it should be dealt in such a way that the person who has committed the crime should realize that this is time-bound. Like I said, Honey Rose can be described as a model case in the same. And I believe this type of action is required in every other case. And as we discussed this, social media can do a lot of things in this. Like social media can insist on account verification. Yes, true.
[00:18:26] Only verified accounts can post comments and if there are any issues, they themselves can report it. Yeah. Because you can create auto-bots which can report the negative comments. But whenever they see that, they'll be able to report the thing. They can create platforms in a way that they'll directly report the thing to the officials or cybersecurity experts who can take action.
[00:18:51] So once there are cases like this and model actions like typing, it's going to create a positive effect. Understood. So now, let's moving on for the final question. Let's talk about how these kind of issues can be countered. So there is a widespread allegation that Gen C and Gen Alpha and the youngsters of today can't handle the pressure or negative remarks. Because you can't change the society or your family's mentality in a day, right?
[00:19:20] So one thing which you can do is equip them to face such pressure and say that, you know, it's nothing. So how can youngsters, first of all, is it true to say that, you know, Gen C and Gen Alpha or the youngsters of today can't handle pressure? Is that a fact? And second thing is, if it is true or not, how can these youngsters develop some kind of resilience against this body shaming?
[00:19:46] And develop that kind of self-esteem so that, you know, they can move forward with positivity. We've been saying that Gen Z or the new generation needs to be equal to something. We don't say that because we are going to get our ministers, our hospital workers, our doctors, engineers, media professionals from this generation. Basically, what you should do is help them in building their needs.
[00:20:12] They should be taught the steps of emotional regulation. And there is a concept of cognitive flexibility where you can adapt to thoughts and perspectives in response to changing situations. Like, you need to adapt to your situation. So these things can be taught to them. And you need to offer them social support. Like, not the social support you are having, you are getting in a social media platform, but they should have real friends and family members and community.
[00:20:42] Right. And the social media platform can be used for that. They should be able to help them. And we should teach them positive coping mechanisms, like how to deal with stress. Maybe through exercise, mindfulness is a tool. Problem-solving techniques can be taught. But unfortunately, these things like, there's the concept of psychological immunity, which depends on solving things like personal traits, our environment, our past experience, our mindset.
[00:21:09] Even though it depends on these things, you need to equip them for that. Like, to prepare for an exam, like after plus two, if they want to write an endless exam, they start preparation by fifth or sixth. So we know life is a bigger battle than your understood. So we need to teach children, young adults from a very young age. I think these things should be incorporated in our school and college curriculum. Yes. That's one way of doing it.
[00:21:36] They can be taught to practice self-care, whether it's exercise or healthy eating. They can be taught mindfulness and other physical activities. The importance of building a strong, meaningful relationship. And they need to learn from challenges. Like, challenges will be there, but we need to outgrow them. Yeah. And always tell them whenever they feel necessary, they should definitely seek the help of a mental health professional. If they need therapy, they should go for that or counseling.
[00:22:05] So these things can actually, we believe, counter the issues. Yeah, I think, you know, that is a valid point there. I think one, we have to normalize that, you know, there are challenges in life and it's not a better process. And once we normalize the process and, you know, stop setting these unrealistic standards, that is one way to go.
[00:22:28] And then, you know, probably improve our awareness campaigns and build community groups so that, you know, these kids have something to fall back on and, you know, talk to someone. So I think with that, we have a lot of, you know, hope ahead. And let's hope that, you know, a lot of body positivity would be the way to go moving forward. Thank you so much, doctor, for joining us today. You're welcome.
[00:22:55] Yeah, so this brings us to an end of today's episode. This is on Manorama's Newsbreak, an explainer podcast, which is produced by Harita Benjamin. It airs every week and is available on all podcast platforms. Do follow on Manorama.com for more updates. Thank you so much.