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| Sunday, 9 October 2005 |
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To be Made-up or Not
by Rikaza Hassan "What's taking you so long?" he asks while staring into his watch and fidgeting by the doorway. "Just a minute Hon, I'm just adding on the final touches to my make up," she replies.
Make up has not always been as widely acceptable in Sri Lanka as it is right now. However it also possesses a history that spans over the centuries from copper, malachite and carbon. Nowadays it is a most common sight to see most womenkind on the streets wearing at least some kind of make-up - perhaps just lipstick, a dash of eye make-up or a brush of rouge on the cheeks. Says Nilanthi, a PR Executive in Colombo, says that make-up emphasises your best features and hides your flaws. "With make-up you don't ever have to feel self-conscious just because you've got a painful pimple or dark circles under your eyes." Her boyfriend Trevor readily agrees. "All women in general look much better in make-up. It's a tool that they can use to look much better, and in today's world this is very important," he adds. Not all members of the male sex however are of this view. Speaking to a bunch of young adult males, they had this to say: "Sri Lankan women look horrible with their faces painted. The make-up doesn't match their skin colour or type, and they look artificial or even zombie-like." Shalini, 23 believes that while make-up is a good thing, "natural" is the way to go. "I only use as little make-up as possible - I look good and the experts definitely agree," she says. Her colleague and friend, Primanthi however says she cannot live without make-up. Says Primanthi, "I need the self-confidence and all-together good feeling that wearing make-up gives me. Only my family and very close friends have seen me without make-up. I wear at least a bit of foundation and eye make-up when I even go to the nearby shops." "I have absolutely no idea why women have to spend so much time wearing make-up. I thought choosing the proper attire was difficult enough, but they have to spend another couple of hours applying colours all over their body," says Samantha very pissed off. Having a younger sister whom he is supposed to chaperon all the time and a girlfriend both of whom just want to look a little better when they go out is an "excruciating waste of time" according to him. In deep contrast to Samantha however is the ladies' favourite Hugh Grant. The 'quite the man', Grant once said in an interview with a celebrity magazine that he prefers New York women to their British counterparts because they are not afraid to wear a lot of make-up. He also admitted to using some of Liz Hurley's cosmetics while they lived together during their 13-year old relationship. He said that it made his skin much better and that he felt quite good.
"My brother thinks that I don't know he has whitening creams, foundation, toner, lip balm and mascara hidden in his cupboards. He must spend quite a lot every month because he buys expensive make-up and always locks his room when he's putting it on," says Maria with a cheeky grin on her face. Malaka, 17 was one of the few guys who actually admitted outright to being a user of the allegedly feminine product of make-up. "I use mascara, foundation and rouge on a daily basis," he says assuredly though it is very hard to discern it from simply looking at his face.
As for the male folk, Thilaque says that men need a "handsome look" and hence require no make-up. "They just need to take care of their hairstyle, beard and skin," he says. The age of beginning to wear make-up has always considerably lowered. It is not a rare occasion when sights a pre-teenager wearing make-up. Tharini, 11 is one such person. "I just wear a little lipstick and eye make-up. I only wear a lot for a party or a wedding," she says. Her mother, Neela however says that while she does not see anything wrong with her daughter wearing make-up at such an age, she herself however never wears make-up. "I didn't even wear make-up for my wedding," she points out. For, or against it, the billion dollar cosmetic industry is thriving as it innovates even more products allegedly to make us be able to look better, and of course will most definitely continue to grow at a steady rate. Believe it or not, the male cosmetics industry which also includes skin formulations designed with the male skin specially in mind is much more profitable than its female counterpart. It is also expected grow at a faster rate. Whether make-up is a confidence builder -akin to that vitamin pill you pop in your mouth every morning, or is a disguise to your insecure self, it is most certainly here to stay. The fans of the former are certainly growing. |
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| Politics | Produced by Lake House |
Seem familiar to you? Most of us have heard at least something along
the same lines at some time or the other, be they sibling, friend, lover
or partner. And in these days of speedy technological advance, the gender
of those involved is not necessarily stereotyped as in the depicted
dialogue. 
Such Hugh Grants are to be found in Sri Lanka as well. There is for
instance a large number of guys out there who apply a various number of
applications to their face and skin before they leave their homes; some of
them even resort to borrowing their sisters' or mother's creams and
various other portions, without they ever knowing of course. 
So what do the experts think? Speaking to Thilaque De Silva, he
believes that make-up is very important to a female. "Even if you have
natural beauty, make-up gives you a proper personality and the correct
look," he says. "However unless they've got a serious problem like
scarring or age related problems, the average person needs only a very
little make-up. Maybe eye make-up and lipstick or just foundation and
toner." he emphasises. 
