KARACHI: Don’t get us wrong, we’re in love with the gorgeous aesthetic of Vogue India‘s 11th anniversary issue, featuring Ranveer Singh and Victoria Secret model Sara Sampaio. But it is problematic.
Titled ‘Welcome to the age of blurred lines’, the cover is all about blurring the lines between traditional gender roles, based on the way both celebrities are similarly dressed. Singh is dressed in a belted angarkha while Sampaio wears a lehenga. They have on similar colours and bohemian jewelry. We’re all for the message this cover is trying to send out: celebrating gender fluidity.
But is it doing that successfully? Gender fluidity means something much different to the LGBTQ community; it’s a lot more than men wearing feminine clothes or vice versa. In fact, the theme of this cover reminds us of Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid’s Vogue cover which did something similar last year. And received a lot of backlash as well.
Secondly, our concern is with Vogue India‘s decision to opt for an international face again. If the magazine chose Ranveer Singh, an Indian star for their 11th anniversary, why couldn’t the leading lady have been Indian as well?
This isn’t the first time Vogue India has done this. For its 10th anniversary, the fashion magazine came under fire for choosing Kendall Jenner to celebrate a momentous occasion for the magazine.
