Body shame and its colonial + patriarchal roots refers to how Indian women's relationships with their bodies have been shaped by both patriarchal control and colonial influence, leading to widespread internalized shame around appearance, desire, aging, and embodiment.

Patriarchal Roots:

1. Control over Female Sexuality: Indian patriarchy has long linked a woman's worth to her purity, modesty, and "virtue." The female body became something to hide, control, and discipline-especially after puberty.
2. Objectification and Obedience: A "good" woman was expected to be quiet, self-sacrificing, and compliant. Her body existed for service-whether for family honor, childbearing, or male pleasure-not for her own joy or agency.
3. Fatphobia and Control of Appetite: Appetite-whether for food, sex, or power-has been policed. Women were conditioned to suppress their desires, with phrases like "ladkiyon ko itna mat khana chahiye" (girls shouldn't eat so much) or "good girls don't sit like that."

Colonial Roots:

1. Victorian Morality: British colonizers imposed Victorian ideals of "modesty" and "civilized femininity" on Indian women. Sari blouses, covered legs, and veils became symbols of morality-not just culture. Sensuality was vilified.
2. Whiteness as the Beauty Ideal: Fair skin, thin noses, and lighter features were glorified by colonial gaze and media. This led to the deep-rooted colorism and Eurocentric beauty standards that persist today-fueling industries like skin-lightening products.
3. Disconnect from Indigenous Embodiment: Pre-colonial Indian traditions (like temple carvings, dance forms, and tantra) celebrated the sensual, powerful, fertile female body. Colonial influence reframed these as "primitive" or "shameful," creating dissonance between our roots and our internalized morality.