<i>Ghinn</i> : Colorism and gendered revulsion in North India

Abstract This article examines how colorism is gendered in North India by foregrounding women's narratives of being subjected to ghinn —disgust or repugnance—around their skin tone. I argue that paying attention to the ghinn directed at dark skin shows how colorism here builds on casteism, and how there is a gendered dimension to it: ghinn at women perceived as outside the norms of feminine beauty, and ghinn at marginalized communities, are both, simultaneously, triggered by dark skin. How does the ideal of light‐skinned beauty make living with dark skin difficult? In this paper, I analyze how for women perceived as dark, it is not the color of their skin in itself, but how it produces ghinn in those around them that has long‐term effects on their sense of self.