Barbie turns 50 tomorrow, a day after International Women’s Day. DNA finds out whether there’s any reason to rejoice.
On Valentine’s Day this year, celebrations in New York started with a fashion show where 50 top designers including Tommy Hilfiger and Gucci showcased their ‘Barbie-inspired’ outfits. Models with outrageously long eyelashes walked the ramp. The celebrations will continue through the year with new launches, including a new Barbie with a tattoo.
However, Barbie has also been a point of contention over the years, with critics claiming the doll sets off an early obsession with looks and consumerism.
Toy-maker Mattel has managed to promote the doll as an icon for independent urban women. “Barbie represents a woman with choices. She never settles as only being Ken’s girlfriend. She had the clothes, for example, to launch a career as a nurse, a stewardess and a nightclub singer.”
Barbie’s predecessor may actually have been a German porn doll by the name Bild Lilli. Barbie’s creator, Ruth Handler felt little girls didn’t really want pudgy baby dolls; they would prefer a doll with grown up clothes and breasts.
Barbie made her way into Indian markets in 1987. Initially dressed in mini-skirts and tank tops, she gradually turned ‘Hindustani’ — going from from blonde to black, changing from skirts to sarees. What remained unchanged is the ultra-slim body shape.
Praniika Borkar, 13, is a big fan and has a collection of eight dolls. Though she claims to be out of the ‘Barbie phase’ she will never do away with them. “I always feel like I will need them back,” she smiles. Shweta Mirpuri, 7, goes a step further. She insists on using only products with a Barbie tag attached — clothes, shoes, perfumes, stationery and accessories. “My doll has a toy house, kitchen and a make-up set,” she says. “I want to be like her when I grow up.”
Sonya Dutta Choudhury, book critic and mother of three daughters, has been fighting this sentiment for a long time. “I give away the ones that are gifted to them. If they decide to be like her, they’ll starve themselves.” Feminists through the 70s and 80s have protested against the unreal body proportion of the dolls and the influence they’ve had on young girls. Like most parents she knows, Dutta made a conscious effort to buy cotton dolls made of cabbage patches through their childhood.
Says Dr Bimal Modi, plastic surgeon, Hinduja Hospital, “Children grow up with a concept of an American figure,” he says.
