Inspired by Aimee Lou Wood, Indian women open up on embracing their imperfect smiles

In an Instagram age of flawless perfect smiles we filter ourselves to death for the sake of perception Dental correction is part of this and is big business but a silent rebellion nevertheless brews on the sidemdashone tooth gap at a timeHeadlining the trend is Aimee Lou Wood the British actress from White Lotus and Sex Education who is refreshingly herselfmdashdespite a recent Saturday Night Live sketch that mocked her which she termed ldquomean and unfunnyrdquo Her choice to keep her natural teeth wonky and all has made people across the globe feel seen In India the sentiment is slowly catching on where weird smiles arenrsquot weird at allFor Gehana Dassani her wacky teeth add character to her face just as in comic books where every character has their own niche quality which makes them stand out PIC COURTESYGEHANA DASSANIGehana Dassani a 21year old visual communications student from Ahmedabad originally from Pune says she has had ldquorabbit teethrdquo since childhood ldquoMy mom used to tell me not to push my tongue on my gums or my teeth would come out weirdmdashbut they still didrdquo she says flashing her smile Over time comments from relatives made her conscious ldquoTheyrsquod say lsquoYou look perfect but the teethrsquomdashand Irsquod stop smiling in picturesrdquoHowever college changed that People stopped caring Dassani says she hasnrsquot been told a single thing about her teeth in the past two years ldquoThere was a time I thought of braces but I was scared Irsquod be forced into it And needles No thanksrdquoShe now sees her teeth as part of her identity ldquoSociety will keep on setting standards that they make up and move on she says ldquoBefore you have to change anything about yourself it is important to know why Is it because it makes you uncomfortable or is it other people societyrdquo In comic books every character has its own niche quality which makes you stand out of the crowd This is my thing my teeth It adds characterrdquo she assertsMadhuri Banerjee remembers the times she used to get bullied for her teeth weight and curly hair PIC COURTESY MADHURI BANERJEEAuthor Madhuri Banerjee 49 has a similar storymdashbut from another era ldquoIn college no one really spoke about teeth It was more about being fair thin or prettyrdquo she says ldquoYou could get away with flaws if you fit the body imagerdquoShe had braces at 11 for lockjaw but her buck teeth stayed ldquoIrsquove always been bullied for my teeth weight and curly hairmdashthe trifecta of not having a boyfriendrdquo she laughs ldquoEven now Irsquom conscious about smiling in photos Not in real life but on social media Thatrsquos where the judging happensrdquo Not changing for anyone she believes her flaws are what makes her memorable ldquoMy smile exists and thatrsquos enough Itrsquos societyrsquos perception that needs fixing not my teethrdquoDr Rajesh Koppikar consultant dentist at Kokilaben Hospital sees ldquothe classic front gappedteethrdquo often ldquoAnd honestly itrsquos not even a bad thing I tell patientsmdashwhy change something that looks goodrdquoAimee Lou WoodCorrection isnrsquot necessary unless therersquos a health issue such as improper chewing jaw pain or cleaning difficulties he says ldquoIf one has slightly yellow teeth itrsquos not a health issue But if teeth are yellow due to deposits or stains they need to be cleaned Similarly when you have buck teeth due to tongue thrusting you might need correctionrdquo Still most patients donrsquot walk in saying lsquoI love my teeth and I want to keep themrsquo Body positivity in dentistry hasnrsquot quite arrived here Itrsquos always lsquoMy smilersquos not good enoughrsquo And that pressure starts early often from familyrdquo he addsAs someone who has never seen a dentist Dassani is okay with her teeth staying the way they are ldquoIf I go and they say itrsquos medically necessary Irsquoll consider it But Irsquove stopped seeing it as a flawrdquoBanerjee agrees but adds a layer ldquoIf it really affects your mental health go ahead But fix your selfworth first not just your smile Ask why you want to changemdashbecause of society or because of yourselfrdquoBoth women agree on one thingmdashrepresentation matters ldquoWhen I see someone like Aimee on screen it reminds me Irsquom not alonerdquo says Dassani ldquoAnd I still get compliments on my smilemdashit makes me feel good Normal teeth are fine but mine make me stand outrdquoSo is society more accepting today Banerjee isnrsquot so sure ldquoWersquore still in that rsquo80s headspacemdashperfect is still in But your inner confidence will come through within you whether or not you get work done on your body And thatrsquos magneticrdquoldquoBody positivity in dentistry isnrsquot quite there yetrdquo Dr Koppikar states PIC COURTESY DR RAJESH KOPPIKARDr Koppikar says he sometimes advises patients against braces ldquoIf yoursquove lived 30 years with a little gap and it hasnrsquot bothered you why now Unless itrsquos affecting your oral health or your selfconfidence you donrsquot need to fix itrdquoTeeth have become more than tools to chew withmdashtheyrsquore aesthetic expressive even political Whether someone embraces their overbite or books that orthodontist appointment itrsquos personal The key is agency As Dassani puts it ldquoWersquore all just trying to be okay in our own skinmdashor our own smilerdquoatOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params