This write-up was done for Daily News and Analysis (DNA) and was published in the newspaper on 15th December 2013. The Author Pooja Bhula asked me to answer some questions on Pink. The full newspaper article can be accessed here:
Pink!!! Love it? Hate it? Couldn't Care Less?
DNMUM293268 | 12/15/2013 | Author: Pooja Bhula | WC 896 |
Link: http://dnasyndication.com/dna/dna_english_news_and_features/Pink-Love-it-Hate-it-Couldnt-care-less/DNMUM293268
Qn. How did the idea of pink for women reach India? Does it have any connotations in the religions or culture of this land or was the concept a western import like many others?
Ans: If you look at the history of the word Pink you will see that the word is derived from a flower “pinks” which is common to Europe and Central Asia. Another theory believes that Pink derived from the German word pinken which mean to pucker or peck. Although no one is clear about the origin of the colour Pink it is generally believed that the colour started to gain prominence somewhere in the 14th century AD when some painters started depicting Jesus Christ as dressed in pink. Pink was for some time considered as the colour of Christ’s body. Some historians believe that Pink was a symbolic colour and represented the spiritual union between God and humans. Pink is derived by mixing Red and White – now white in many societies reflected God, Purity or higher Self and Red represented the Aggressive Passions of the humans. Hence a mixing of Red and White reflected the mixing of humans and Gods. The renaissance period painters led to social acceptance of the colour as they increasingly started using this to represent the flesh in their paintings.
Madam Pompadour (1721 – 1764) - the mistress of King Louis XV of France – is credited with popularising the colour in the royal courts of Europe. It will be of interest to note that pink was considered as the colour of boys in England for a large part of the 18th and the 19th century. The colour of English uniform of this period was dominated by the colour Red and small boys (who were seen as small soldiers) wore pink – which was derived by boiling the red cloth.
It will surprise many to know that Britain itself was responsible for the distinction between colour blue for boys and pink for girls. It is believed that with the growing naval power of Britain, people started dressing their children in sailor suits and naval uniforms. The most common colour of British navy ceremonial uniform was Blue and slowly and slowly blue started to dominate the colour spectrum for boys with the pink (which was more soothing or rather less aggressive than blue) being relegated to girls. It wasn’t until the 19th century that pink became more associated with women. After the Second World War the slogan “think pink” was meant to encourage women to embrace their femininity after men returned from the war. Pink tones were seen not only in clothing but consumer goods, appliances and even automobiles. The association of pink with women was well established by 1950’s. Nazi Germany also contributed to the growth of colour pink. Inmates in Nazi concentration camps – who were accused of hom*osexuality – were forced to wear an up-side down pink triangle. Now-a-days the pink triangle has become the symbol of pride of the gay community. Another factor which worked in favour of pink was the discovery chemical dyes which made pink colour brighter and more brilliant. Jacqueline Kennedy (1929-1994), wife of John F. Kennedy, is believed to responsible for making pink a high fashion colour in the international arena.
As regards India, it is commonly believed that the colour Pink is an import from Iran because the Hindi word for pink is “gulabi” which is believed to be of Persian origin. There is no word for pink in Sanskrit language the closest being “Trinshawattapatra” which means pink coloured water lily. If we look at Hindu Gods and Goddesses, the colour pink is most prominently seen with the lotus in the hands of Goddess Laxmi. Even the word “kamal” is not associated with pink but with lotus flower. Ochre, White, Red, Green, Blue are some of the common colours of Hindu religion. The advent of traders from Middle East and the repeated Islamic invasions of India dominantly established Islam in India. Because of this, pink which found favour amongst the Muslims, tended to slowly seep in the Hindu language but it could never quite get the foothold in cultural practises.
As such, it is believed that Pink is not native of India but is an import from two different sources – the British and the Persian.
The pink colours for girls and blue for boys primarily seems to have come from England. India, being dominated by the British for close to two centuries many a development of the British society seeped into Indian upper class. By the 1950’s the concept of gender segregation by colours was dominant in the western world and with independence India also followed the same trend.
Qn: How do consumers in India perceive pink? Is it strongly associated with being a woman's colour? Is this stereotype prevalent only in urban areas or do people in rural areas ascribe to it as well?
Ans: Although I don’t have data for this, I believe that the colour pink is strongly associated with women in India. This is majorly an urban phenomenon because people in rural India still have a marked preference for brighter natural colours. It is a well known fact that people who are closer to nature have their colour senses dominated by natural colours where as the urban consumers (removed from nature) generally tend to prefer more mixed colours.
Qn: What traits are attributed to it in India and around the world? (For instance white is often associated with peace, among other things)
Ans: The following traits are attributed to Pink:
- Calmness
- Childhood
- Femininity
- Fertility
- Kindness
- Nurturance
- Romance
- Sensitivity
- Tenderness
- Unselfish love
These associations are taken from various western sources. Indian Culture does not seem to have any specific colour association for pink. However Muslims and others in India use the term “gulabo” as a form of endearment.
Qn: Do you see the trend changing in India? Is there a shift from pink being primarily considered a woman's colour?
Ans: With the advent of Barbie and the continuous pestering of the media that pink is for females, the answer to this question is a big no. However consumers are fickle and are difficult to predict. So I guess the best answer would be “not in the near future”.
