SYDNEY SWEENEY'S NEW AD DOESN'T LAND RIGHT

Until fashion ditches its obsession with ‘great genes,’ this looks like the same old pair of pants — just whiter, and deeply out of touch

- By Manjusha Radhakrishnan Entertainment Editor

In India, we’ve been spoon-fed the same script for generations: the darker you are, the more likely you are to be cast as the villain or the vamp in a movie and in life.

But if you’re fair? Suddenly, doors fling open — you get the dream job, the dishy husband or date, and a whole shelf of fairness creams to keep the colonial fantasy alive. Melanin? Apparently a crime.

So forgive me if I gagged a little when American Eagle rolled out its Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans campaign. A limited-edition denim drop for a charity batting for domestic abuse. Cute.

JEANS, GENES, GOOD STOCK

In the ad, Sweeney earnestly lectures us: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality, and even eye colour,” before dropping the punchline: “My jeans are blue.” Riveting stuff. Darwin just rolled in his grave.