Saturday, May 10, 2008

Does the Wall Street Journal do a swimsuit issue?

That was the first thought that came to mind when I picked up the Mint 'Lounge' section this morning. Because the cover feature 'Every Girl's Beach Basics' looked like it had escaped from the Elle magazine office and mistakenly taken refuge here.

So it is summer, and some of us will be on holiday or found in local pools. But even then, I would expect a business newspaper's lifestyle supplement to cover the subject more intelligently - and differently - from the fashion magazines. You know, the ones with 200 pages of ads, 100 va va voom pictures and 14 one paragraph articles to hold all that thick and glossy paper together.

My first question is: how many of the readers of Mint wish to 'make waves in the best of the season swimsuits'. And how many of us wish to 'get the look' using Ceramide Sun Beige and all that blah.

The basic issue with Indians and swimsuits is;
a) We don't have the bodies
b) And we don't have body confidence.

Now these are two different things. I was at a resort in Goa last month and there were a lot of Russians all over the place. Not all of them had perfect bodies but they were so comfortable in their own skin that you wouldn't really notice the flab.

But getting pack to the Mint spread, these pics of some gorgeous professional model lounging on a yacht do NOTHING for me. People like her... it's their job. What's more, the absurd prices of stuff I need to be a 'bonafide beach bum' left me feeling very poor and wretched indeed:

Reference pic above:
Lime Green swimsuit (La Perla) - Rs 12,000
Emerald satin shoes (Nine West) - Rs 4800
Giant stud cuff in black patent leather - Rs 10,145
Gold plated aviators (Mont Blanc) - Rs 23, 450

(And that's just 'one outfit')

But here is what REALLY took the cake. The black and white striped beach dress by Chanel for... Rs 50,000.

Tell me dear writers and editors @ Mint, would YOU ever pay up this kind of money for a beach dress? And if not, why are you recommending it to your readers??

I bet every single person on the Mint team would go buy a beach dress/ sarong from a Janpath or Colaba Causeway for Rs 150.

I bet you guys use Lakme, Lotus and Garnier sunscreen (or at best Banana Boat) - not Vichy costing Rs 1090.

I bet you guys would be terribly embarassed if you were asked to wear any of the swimsuits modelled on that yacht...

My point is, if I want to see pretty girls in bikinis and expensive aspirational products, I will buy that kind of magazine. This is not what I expect from 'Lounge' which is the first paper among the four which come to my home that I pick up on a Saturday.

And my final grouse: Don't men in India ever go for a swim? Because Mint has no advice for them at all. Or maybe they're all guys like the one in the Ceat tyres ad who hang around pools... hoping to click pics of bikini clad women.

P.S. Since we are on the subjects of swimsuits, here is something I wrote on the subject on this blog a couple of years ago: Tere mere beach mein

26 comments:

  1. Haa haa.. I just got done with my Mint issue in 10 minutes which is a rare thing and am now wondering what to do to a Saturday morning with time on my hands and no paper to read. Maybe I'll go for a swim.

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  2. All guys do at a beach is hang out in shorts and enjoy the beauty and the beauties :P .

    @Rashmi What is *your* advice to guys?

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  3. I indeed am surprized to see this issue. Am not a bit mint follower, and nothing except the "wall street journal" attracts me to it, but well.. this would sure be limits.. Ok fine.. Maybe thats how u get the crowd!

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  4. Well.... They are widening their target audience I assume...

    But yeah, u sure have a point there!

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  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  6. I think Mint is a classic example of the way India is mis-sold outside. The product or newspaper is more a reflection of what we wish we could be, or in Mint's case, wish our readers were like than what we are. Thus, not just Mint, even the other glossies you refer to have products and advice relevant to less than 10% of their readers. While the rest of us are expected to aspire to become like that.
    With Mint of course it is a real pity, as its design and look is refreshingly better than its peers. With our global integration, their timing would also have been right, but for this tendency to try and be a lifestyle product, rather than their original calling. While I doubt whether this approach will reap them financial returns, perhaps it is an indicator of the growth in media salaries that this sort of tripe actually makes it to the paper?After all, half their staff seems to have been imported direct from the US.
    Finally, the fact that this approach of writing about stuff that everyone reads like a novelty tale, but noone buys or uses, seems to work in our country. Perhaps it speaks something about the hangup for western models among our so called decision makers.After all, doesn't the english media, with less than 10% of of total readership, get more than 50% of advertising?
    It speaks something

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  7. Rashmi, you really do have a knack of finding really interesting issues to discuss. But do you think MInt really figures as an issue on Youthcurry?

    Consumer, I agree with your views. But why the sudden cut off on comments? Ran into a word limit?

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  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  9. We don't have the bodies because we choose to indulge in unhealthy foods (Ghee, Paneer, Mithai) and lack of physical activity. No wonder we are the diabetes capital of the world.

    The second point western women have far greater body image issues than Indian women will ever have.

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  10. I loved the post..especially the part about the overpriced advertised costumes and accessories!!

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  11. I like your comments about Mint..it is really sad how most mass media is getting focussed on fashion...

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  12. You are absolutely right. Indian women are very uncomfortable with swim wear in general. I think its because our traditional clothes are so different - flowing saris and salwar kameezes. Western clothes are generally more body hugging.

    I love seeing women who are comfortable with their own bodies. I agree with the person who said that western women have more body issues than we do but I guess the joy of swimming and lounging in the sun overtakes it.

    There is also the question of how people around you react. Wearing a skirt in Bombay draws stares, so a bikini is out of the question! When I travel to other countries, I sometimes feel so bad that women in India cannot dress as they please because of the unwanted male attention. So much for Indian culture!

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  13. Pingback from Blogbharti: [...]Rashmi at Youthcurry is not at all pleased with the latest Lounge edition from livemint, which is trying to sell[...]

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  14. On the Rs 50,000 Chanel dress and expensive sunscreen, well, the WSJ and the NY Times have always printed exactly that sort of thing..check out WSJ's Fashion section or NYT's T magazine. Not too many people buy $1000 shoes either..but it's supposed to be "aspirational". Maybe people like looking at the pictures and feel good that they are reading a section obviously meant for millionaires...don't ask, I have never figured out why either..

    But my point is, it's not just Mint..it's a time-honored tradition ;)

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  15. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  16. This just goes to show how editoral teams are willing to dumb-down their newspapers. Sad... Well-written :)

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  17. nWhat a smacking post.

    Are these folks bereft of ideas for them to showcase models in swimwear that are bereft of much clothes !

    wonder what they were thinking !

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  18. One doesnt have to own a lamborghini to sell it :)

    and imho, its more about catching eyeballs (and thereby boosting sales) than about 'recommending' the products per se. Its the bottomline that they care about. Fair enough. Whatever floats their boat!

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  19. Clearly this is an attempt by 'Mint' to make its presence felt among other tabloids like Mid-Day and Mumbai Mirror.

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  20. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  21. Good post!
    Wondering if the Mumbai 'Sainiks' had a look at the cover page. Oh, they were busy targetting the IPL Cheerleading...

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  22. Anonymous9:15 PM

    i just loved your post..seriosuly mint is marketing itself as a niche business paper...but in dnt understand the need for a swimsuit special in the features section..i'm sure there are various other topics to cover

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  23. Hi Rashmi,

    I think you shot yourself in the foot by asking the question whether the editors or any other readers would ever buy those stuff. The editors will obviously say "Yes" and which they did.

    On the whole, I however, agree with you.

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  24. Hi rashmi
    you are very interesting and publishing too

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  25. Anonymous7:46 AM

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