But, Butt, But8230;

Ten years ago, when desi ghee was part of every Punjabi palate, when the Patiala salwar in all its five-metre glory took pride of place in every sohni kudi8217;s wardrobe, Chandigarh women, certainly, were a well-rounded off story. But.

Today, Punjabi lasses are logging in hours at the gym, chipping away at their posterior to fit those hip, androgynous jeans. After the food and the togs, finally, it8217;s the turn of the Punjabi figure to get globalised. And if the beauties on the ramp are reed thin, so are the young Heers. Step into any one of the growing number of discs in Sector 26 yes, the erstwhile hardware hub next to the city8217;s grain market is the city8217;s newest watering hole and you will be stumped by the skin on display. Flaunting noodle-straps, off-shoulder tops, micro-minis and an attitude to match, these college girls with oxidised hair hardly carry the Chandigarh postmark.

The vital stats corroborate this. Jas Lakhmana, a leading designer who takes pride in stocking clothes for large women, grouses that her sizes are shrinking by the year. 8220;What was large last year has become extra-large this season. The average waist size has slipped from 30 to 27 and the hips are teetering on the verge of extinction.8221;

Blame the gyms, of course. Less than a decade ago, you encountered rolly-polly aunties, dupattas tied diagonally, cycling away for a toned tummy. These days, you meet them only at the good old Sukhna Lake or at the swish Golf Club which doesn8217;t seem to mind a bit of fit flab. The skinny set has moved on. Petrified of taking after their well-endowed mothers, who once idolised Asha Parekh 8212; the actress who famously padded her derriere to maintain her reputation for assets 8212; teenage girls are now worshipping the latest Bond girl by almost forfeiting food.

8220;I am deluged with complaints from mothers about their schoolgoing daughters counting every morsel,8221; rues Mrs GK Bedi, a reputed gynaecologist who remembers how her generation liked some meat on the bones. 8220;Genetically, the Punjabi woman tends to be broader at the hips, it8217;s sad to see girls whittling it away by going on crash diets.8221;

Dolly Ahluwalia, the city-based costume designer for blockbusters like Omkara and Water, has other concerns. These days, all girls, she says, look the same unlike before. 8220;Attend any wedding here and you will be overwhelmed by the number of beautiful and well-dressed women. Girth is not an issue. They know how to make the most of their hourglass figures. And the best part is their style is essentially individualistic.8221;

Lakhmana complains too: 8220;It8217;s the same ironed hair, flat hips, tight tops, there is no distinguishing feature about them. Whenever I attend a party, I know exactly what to expect.8221;

Even Sachin Kalra, the city8217;s young fitness guru known for cracking the whip against the bulge, wishes today8217;s girl had more 8220;curves8221;. 8220;It8217;s essential to be fit, but increasingly, I see girls here taking it to an extreme. For instance, I have young pregnant mothers who want to wriggle back into their tight jeans a month after childbirth. It8217;s come to a point where they are ready to do anything, even go under the scalpel,8221; laments Kalra.

A small footnote, though. Over 10 years ago, Dr Devendra Singh, a psychologist at Texas University, who studied the correlation between body shape and perceptions of beauty, had given the hourglass shape his stamp of approval. After five years of research, he said women with waists noticeably narrower than their hips waist-hip ratio of 0.7 are most attractive to men, irrespective of culture or ethnicity.

Well, vintage Chandigarh was quite ahead of that research. For now, I think I will join Big B on sightseeing instead.