We just marked the day of colours. Yes, Holi of course.
But another one too–the International Colour Day which just went by on March 21. This Day celebrates all aspects of colour and the impact they have on our lives, and how they make the world a better place.
Now who would declare a day for colours? Well, an organization called the International Colour Association (ICA). This is an old and respected institution, which counts the National Colour Associations of over 30 countries among its members. It aims to ‘encourage research in all aspects of colour, to disseminate the knowledge gained from this research, and to promote its application to the solution of problems in the fields of science, art, design and industry on an international basis.’
The idea of an international colour day was proposed in 2008, and adopted in 2009. The particular date—21 March—was chosen because it is the summer equinox—the day when the sun shines directly on the equator, and the day and night are of equal length.
If there is a day, can a logo be far behind? Well, not too far! The International Colour Day logo was adopted in 2012. The creator was Hosanna Yau of Hong Kong, who explained the logo thus: ‘two circles form an eye, with an equal half of rainbow color and black representing light a nd darkness, day and night, everyone feast one’s eye on the international color day.
The study of colour is known as chromatics, and is basically about light and its interactions with matter. Colorimetry, which sounds so much more likely a candidate for this, is actually about a related field—‘ the measurement of the wavelength and the intensity of electromagnetic radiation in the visible region of the spectrum. It is used extensively for identification and determination of concentrations of substances that absorb light.’
Colours because of their ubiquity and the emotional and psychological impacts they have, often become a shorthand for other things.
Coming to one of the colour-related matters which has recently been much in the news in India is the Pink Tax. A viral video put out by Sanjay Arora, an advertising veteran, and commented on by several well-known people including Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has kept this in the headlines. I have to admit, I had never heard of this, so thanks Mr. Arora!
What is Pink Tax? As the World Economic Forum explains it: ‘Men and women often buy similar day-to-day products. But research shows that consumer products targeted and advertised to women are sometimes more expensive than comparable products marketed to men. This disparity is referred to as a so-called pink tax.’ The video gives several everyday examples, from deos to haircuts, where the women’s version is more expensive. A research study in the US looked at 800 gender-specific products from nearly 100 brands and found enormous price disparities across product categories. For instance, personal care products targeted to women were 13% more expensive than similar men’s products. Dry cleaning costs for women’s dress shirts was almost double that for dry cleaning of men’s shirts!
You will find plenty of examples close to home. Next time you are browsing or shopping, just do a quick comparison Such differential pricing imposes an extra burden on women, who anyway earn less and have less economic power.
My Colour Day resolution is to boycott products which have stark disparities. I will be happy to buy a men’s deo—I don’t there is any difference anyway.
–Meena
Belated Happy Holi!
Millennial Matriarchs 