Mumbai: Victoria’s Secret is famous for their lingerie and infamous for their inclination for super skinny models. After years of facing backlash for featuring only tall, skinny women, they gave in to the pressure of featuring plus-sized models. A few weeks ago, they got on board 25-year-old Hungarian model Barbara Palvin as an ‘Angel’.
But it seems that Victoria’s Secret’s idea of plus-size is not in tandem with normal standards. At 34-24-35, Palvin is just curvier than other Angels. Not even by a long shot does she qualify as ‘plus-sized’. If she is classified such, then what is that the yardstick other women use to measure themselves, questions The Telegraph.
“If she’s plus size then I’m truck size,” one woman declared on social media, according to a London-based website. Such standards set by influential brands can undo all the constructive work done for body positivity. Women tend to develop insecurities about their body after comparing themselves to “ideal standards” set by such companies.
The move of labelling Palvin as plus was like a slap on the face of the fashion industry’s political correctness. Victoria’s Secret reinforced the stereotype with this move and rescinded the whole empowerment movement that had been set in motion.
There is a drastic difference between the body of an average woman and an Angel. The average bust size of an Angel is 32A to 32D, whereas for other women it is 34D to 36D. Angel’s average height of 5’10” is quite unrealistic for the regular woman, who averages at 5’4”.
“For women models, the bust size is 32 to 34 inches, 5 ft 8, shoulder 14 inches,” says Nick Rampal, fashion curator, who is also a top model in Calcutta. Rampal also says that unrealistic body standards exist for male models. “The male model, ideally, should be 6 feet tall, with a 39” chest, 18.5” to 19” shoulder length, hips 38”,” he adds.
