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Opinion National Interest PoV 50-Word Edit

ThePrint On Camera Videos In Pictures

Society & Culture Around Town Book Excerpts Vigyapanti The Dating Story

More Judiciary Education YourTurn Work With Us Campus Voice

Adnan Sami’s ‘Lipstick’ refuses to smash patriarchy. It only talks about ‘buri nazar’

In the song, Adnan Sami is not trying to ‘save’ women or become some aggressively woke mascot. He simply changed the lens around a taboo object.

Singer-composer Adnan Sami talks about ‘red lipstick’ in his new track, and it has left me wondering: Is he the new feminist? When Sami says, “lipstick laga ke, nazar utar le”, which translates to use lipstick to ward off evil eye, it insinuates red lipstick as an anti-evil-eye armour. 

His approach to the song wasn’t like a revolutionary writer. There is no angry speech. No ‘smash the patriarchy’ monologue. According to his song, red lipstick is protective. It does away with the ‘buri nazzar’ (evil eye). And, this change in tone does the job. 

I can already imagine women like me using it sarcastically. If someone asks, “Why so much red lipstick?”, I can say, “Nazar lag rahi thi” (was getting affected by the evil eye).

To understand the relevance of Sami’s new song, one has to understand that red lipstick has always carried social baggage in India. 

It has been called “too bold, too loud, too modern, too........

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