Beyond Beauty Norms: Body Politics, Fatness, and Ableism in Regional Indian Cinemas

Cinema functions as a powerful cultural institution that shapes collective perceptions of the human body. Within Indian visual culture, cinematic narratives frequently reproduce rigid beauty norms privileging thin, fair-skinned, and able-bodied bodies. Regional Indian cinemas—including Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, and Hindi industries—have historically contributed to the cultural construction of these ideals through character portrayals that marginalize fat and disabled bodies. Such bodies are often depicted as comic, grotesque, or socially undesirable. This paper investigates the politics of body representation in regional Indian cinema with particular attention to the intersection of fatness and ableism. Drawing upon theoretical insights from fat studies, disability studies, and Foucauldian body politics, the study conducts a qualitative textual analysis of selected films including Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015), Da Thadiya (2012), Size Zero (2015), Thamaasha (2019), and Fanney Khan (2018). The analysis reveals that while recent films attempt to challenge normative beauty ideals, they often remain entangled in discourses that frame fatness as a problem requiring transformation or redemption. These films oscillate between body-positive narratives and subtle reinforcement of hegemonic norms through romantic validation or moral reform. The paper argues that regional Indian cinema remains a contested cultural space where competing ideologies of body acceptance and bodily discipline coexist. By examining these representations, the study highlights the need for more inclusiveportrayals that acknowledge bodily diversity beyond narrow aesthetic standards.