I have a problem with the way FAT is looked down upon these days. It seems that most people have a negative connotation and try to adopt whatever means necessary to avoid its build up. But have you ever wondered that fat is a by-product of one’s own miscalculations, wrong acts and behaviour? And I am not talking only about body fat here. Fat transcends genres and permeates across many physical and metaphorical aspects (pun definitely intended) in present times.
For instance, lack of control over will power makes you eat more, skip exercise and lose discipline. This leads to fat accumulation all over your pristine body. If no corrective action is taken soon and on a regular basis, this fat layers itself on internal organs and makes it much harder for you to lose weight. You fall into a rabbit hole of stress eating (while getting stuck in it along the way!) and add more pounds. The fat entrenches itself deeper and you soon divorce the mirror. This is the ‘typical’ version of fat that we visualise when we hear the word. Unless you are a Punjabi mom, or an Indian mother with a daughter of marriageable age, you despise fat every living moment of the day.
Unfortunately for me, the word association agony doesn’t end here. I know cousins of fat who see each other only sporadically, but are bonded via a strong common thread. Remember that fat ego? Fat wallet? Fat mindset? Fat organisations? Fat spending pattern? The list goes on as more skeletons tumble out of the closet. Our minds tend to like harmless fat (like a cuddly baby or a furry pet) because those are universally ‘cute’ but hate on fat as an adjective if attached to a personal quality. Strange, aint it?
You’ll probably notice that I mixed up both good and bad kinds of ‘fat’ in that family tree. That’s because in my mind FAT is not necessarily a negative or a bad word. On the contrary, like my grandmother used to say, being fat is a sign of wealth! (alas, the millennials will argue with me on this till the cows come home).
It is because the imperfect social media driven world of today has given a voice to everyone. We have more self-professed thought leaders online than those graduating from universities with valid education. Case in point is this new fad about “body positivity”. Not that I am against any body type, but why make a big deal about it online? Women and men have been overweight since ages. Heck, I was a fat kid once. My nick name used to be various Hindi adjectives of fat. But that is not a justified motivation to become a plus sized model and post semi-naked photos on Instagram for followers and paid partnerships! And it is definitely not a legit job or a long-term career at all. Even now when I’m still overweight, I don’t feel the need to publicise to the world and seek validation.
I see a dangerous feedback loop, especially for women, because the high of social media popularity is risky. You need to maintain that plus size figure in order to grow that fan following, which means you will never be able to lose the weight. Are you really happy being fat then? It is a weird conundrum for me to accept.
The privileged minority that has managed to avoid the social media epidemic is truly blessed. They are mostly content with their body type and lifestyle choices. When there is no pressure to ‘look up to’ some fake societal benchmarks, you can exist in a more content manner than the average hipster-millennial. Real gratification does not need validation from anyone but your own heart (or mind, depends on where you think from).
I have been living in the Middle East for the last few years. By all accounts, this region is famous for the opulence and the ostentatious behaviour it brings along. No wonder why I keep seeing obscenely fat people everywhere. What amazes me is the shameless disregard of and for their physical condition. I still see the same overweight crowd on a regular basis at those fat acquisition places – junk food joints, expensive brand stores and overpriced coffee shops obnoxiously lapping up more of the same. Vicious cycle you say?
Such brash attitude reminds me of the famous words that ‘obesity is a rich man’s syndrome’. Poor people can’t afford to willingly become fat and then spend on fad diets and gym memberships to lose that bulk. Heck, they can’t even afford ‘plus size clothing’. Maybe that is why I am yet to see a fat and poor person.
Not just physically but metaphorically too.