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By Avika I’m an (Indian) Barbie Girl, in a Barbie world…are some words I’d never thought I’d say. But, thanks to the makers of Barbie and Anita Dongre, this vision that thousands of Indian girls have dreamt of is finally coming to life.
Anita Dongre, an infamous fashion designer who is known globally, especially for her work in making wedding gowns, has collaborated with Mattel, to bring an Indian Barbie doll hitting the stores on the auspicious festival of Diwali. This is a very powerful move in terms of boosting their sales. But there is definitely more to this Barbie than just the market. Keep in mind that this is not the first Indian Barbie that is launching, but rather is the first Indian Barbie that is actually taken with respect to an Indian designer, that too, Anita Dongre herself. Previously, all the Indian Barbie dolls launched were not just physically different from how the majority of Indian girls look, but also included things like—“sarees have shawls” which is untrue. The first doll was launched in 1996, with inaccurate representation and information. The next one released in 2012 where the Barbie had her own “monkey friend” and the original “Barbie in India” was nothing more than a standard blonde in a saree. But, the Diwali Barbie is a much more accurate representation of Indian women as it has appropriate clothing, and highlights the importance of the festival itself. It is also applauded for having darker skin as the previous ones were much paler than the darker brown skin tones that prevail in India. It not only helps us fight the colorism that Indians, especially women have faced but also empowers them to feel comfortable in their own skin. It’s more than a doll. Dolls like this, which accurately represent cultures, can make children feel more confident about themselves. I think if I was 6, receiving a Barbie doll that looked like me, I’d be the happiest person ever. It would have encouraged me to be a confident person and feel okay about the skin colour I was given. It goes on to prove the importance of listening and understanding of your audience. The criticism which is actually taken and then further incorporated to produce a better version and vision. It also gives Indian designers more space in the designing world and motivates women in different ways.
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By Jade Note: This article contains a few minor spoilers for the live-action Mulan movie.
When my family heard that Mulan came out on Disney Plus for everyone to watch the new live-action film, we were all excited. Although I had been skeptical about the idea of having some witch as a villain, I was nonetheless excited after seeing the trailer for the movie. After the movie, we were severely disappointed. The movie felt disappointing, a lack of substance. As we were watching, my father pointed out frequent inconsistencies in the movie, from the featuring of buildings from the wrong time period and such. For me, I was disappointed by the portrayal of the Chinese people. As a Chinese-American, I expected Mulan to be an accurate portrayal of Chinese values, right? However, Disney failed us. The movie, directed by a white woman, was nothing like the Chinese culture I knew. Instead, it relied on stereotypes. Stereotypes about the Chinese people surrounding luck. A weird emphasis on Qi. Even my parents, my mom who grew up in Hong Kong, and my dad who grew up in Taiwan, were confused by Qi. In fact, my mom even asked what this Qi was! The concept of the witch got even worse than I had ever imagined. There was a weird emphasis on fate and luck in the film. Although I don’t remember the precise term they frequently used in the film, I really despised how Mulan’s greatness relied on her luck and Qi (life force). Suddenly, it made it seem that Mulan was this great hero who was already powerful because she had some sort of superpower and an incredible amount of luck? It made no sense to me, leaving me feeling frustrated and confused. The emphasis on honor in the film also disgusted me. Chinese culture doesn’t have the same emphasis on honor as the film. I didn’t understand the purpose of the emphasis of honor in the film and shortly realized that it was just a portrayal of a stereotype, the stereotype of the honorific Chinese person. It was a complete miss portrayal of Chinese culture, leaving me feeling disgusted with the film. Frankly, I’m surprised that I was even able to sit through the entire film. It felt so miserable, cliche and fake to me. As an Asian-American person, I couldn’t resonate with a film that supposedly represented my background, my culture. Did Disney even consider how the film would affect people’s view on Chinese people? If they did consider the film’s effect on everyone’s view of the Chinese people, they clearly didn’t think it through. I can’t find a single Asian person who enjoyed watching the film. Through the emphasis of stereotypes and the inability to appeal to the people the film poorly portrays, Mulan is a total flop. Disney’s Mulan isn’t the only blunder of Disney’s when it comes to representation for the Asian-American community. The reliance on Asian stereotypes in the world of Disney films is disappointing. In A Wrinkle in Time, Charles Wallace (an intelligent white boy in the book series) is portrayed as Asian. Charles Wallace is a character mostly defined by intelligence in the film. Marvel’s first movie, starring an Asian-American superhero, is suspiciously about a master martial artist, fueled Asian stereotypes even further. Sadly, before the release of Shang Chi, the only Asian Marvel superhero I could think of, was Wong… Artemis Fowl, instead of accurately portraying the Japanese-Russian Butler, chose an African actor instead to portray the loyal servant of Artemis Fowl, reinforcing the stereotype of the obedient African-American, while relegating the character’s time in Japan to be a time of martial arts training instead, making Japan seem like some magical place where people get master martial art skills from. Disney isn’t the only entity with disappointing Asian representation. J. K. Rowling’ s beloved Harry Potter series featured Cho Chang and the Patil twins, all of whom were portrayed as meek and boring. Cho Chang is perhaps one of the most hated characters in the franchise, with many fans mocking her for being weak. While Rowling introduced Cho as a strong Quidditch player, she suddenly turned her into an absolute wimp and weak person after the events of The Goblet of Fire. The Patil twins were seen as undesirable, being the only options left to bring to the Yule Ball. In Rowling’s most recent work, The Cursed Child features an Asian character who finds the protagonists of the play, only to be killed off a few seconds later. Overall, society has a problem with Asian stereotypes, and unfortunately, it's not going away. This is disappointing to the Asian community. Not all Asians are master martial artists. Not all Asians care about honor. Not all Asians believe in feng shui, Qi or a combination of both. Not all Asians are the same. Stop putting us in a box. By Lana For the past few months, it has become evident that hate crimes are being targeted toward the Asian demographic, particularly those who are elderly. Communities that have encapsulated decades of Asian culture and representation are now being muddled with harmful rhetoric and physical assaults that have led individuals to be in critical conditions. As I continue to see news articles circulating online and the overwhelming reactions from the #StopAAPIHate movement, I wanted to write a letter to my grandparents based upon these events.
To my grandparents, I wholeheartedly despise the reality where you are forced to fear of being hate-crimed and harassed in public. I hate the increased portrayal of xenophobia, where we are faulted and belittled as the ‘kung-flu’ or ‘Chinese virus,’ but I especially loathe how you are the physical targets due to being older and more incapable of defending yourselves from spiteful people. As immigrants who sought for better lives for the family, you have paved the path for me to comfortably express myself and my cultural identity. It simply feels unfair for me to now benefit from my surroundings, while you are continuing to face the lingering and despicable racism that I cannot eradicate from your lives. When watching the news, the crimes being sporadically done are within areas of our community. I am incredibly scared that you will be next. As you possess the soul to continue persevering, I now have the spirit to bring recognition against such injustice. Love, Lana Ever since the rise of assault cases toward AAPI (Asian and/or Pacific Islander) citizens amidst the pandemic, I have attempted to bring awareness to this issue within my community. For the past few months, I have created a collection of art pieces that expressed a lens of violence and prejudice against the AAPI demographic. My message was able to be recognized through school-wide art festivals and local coffee shop windows, which allowed my community to understand how my cultural identity drove me to vocalize my perspective on this social justice issue. Whether it is locally or globally, you may have the opportunity to become involved. Every bit of effort counts and will be recognized. For those who feel compelled to bring recognition and spread further awareness for AAPI hate crimes and the #StopAAPIHate movement, please check out their website; it consists of resources to report incidents, provides news and safety tips when going out in public, educates on what is considered as discrimination through a federal perspective, and contains organizations to donate to. It also contains multilingual translations for languages spoken among Asian communities, which will be useful for a larger demographic to understand the material. Furthermore, I will provide a series of resources and links below that promotes support against racism. It is vast, so please feel free to share or go through these resources and learn more on whether there are any organizations near your community.
Please feel free to use these resources! I hope that we all may one day feel protected and safe again as we unite through solidarity and strength during this difficult period of time. |
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Teenagers With Experience is an online organisation created to provide teenagers worldwide with an online platform to share their own experiences to be able to help, inform and educate others on a variety of different topics. We aim to provide a safe space to all young people.
Please note that the content on this website is created by teenagers. While we strive to provide accurate and helpful information, it is important to remember that we are not professional experts. If you are experiencing a crisis or need professional advice, please reach out to a qualified mental health professional or a helpline. |