Tik Tok Spirituality and Accent Humour: De-colonize Western Media.
Western media in the 2020s is widely led by Tik Tok. By far one of the most powerful apps, you can surely go on it and find a plethora of Indian creators mocking their parents. Not just Indian Tik Tokers, but you will also find numerous Western individuals making fun of traditional Indian Tik Tokers, their spelling mistakes, and their grammar. Youth media in the 2010s was no different, and you could find a myriad of Youtubers ridiculing their parents and their accents, inspired by the OG Indian demean-er: Lily Singh. Growing up, I watched her intensely. She was one of the only brown representations in the modern media, and I connected to her swiftly as an Indian immigrant myself. Introspecting about 5 years later, I begin to realize that her humor did a lot more harm than good on Indian youth. The media trivializes Indians as naturally as one sleeps.
Indian characters in TV shows rarely exist if not without traditional stereotypes and accents attached to them for humor. There are not many Indian characters with an Indian accent, who have not been used as a Western punching bag for a couple of laughs. Growing up we watched Baljeet in Phineas and Ferb, and we watched Ravi in Hey Jessie. As we got older we saw the Big Bang Theory and the Simpsons where larger stereotypes of IT geeks and supermarket owners became negatively associated with Indians. The supermarket owner in the Simpsons was mockingly given the long name of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. As young adults now we can still see Tiktokers mocking Indian parents and accents. Stand-up comedy is plastered with joking about Indian culture. Despite Trevor Noah speaking on the serious topic of Indian farmers, he had to include his punch line demeaning Indian accents. In this video hyperlinked, various comedians mock Indian accents and humiliate Indians, our traditional religious clothing, and our accents.
This is obviously the more overt and obvious racism that Indians can note through the media. However more covert examples exist. Tik Tok spirituality has become a widespread trend where chakras, meditation, deities, manifestations, and incense have become extremely popular. The 369 methods of manifesting have become associated with Nikola Tesla, rather than the Hindu spiritual texts dating back further than Tesla, which speaks on these practices. Manifestations, chakras, deities, and incense are all traditionally Hindu methods of praying, yet it is Western culture and media that become the forefront of this spirituality. People are getting Om tattoos, and Ganesha decor, without understanding the implications of treating Hindu spirituality as a trend. Rihanna modeled a Ganesha pendant on her topless body for Instagram and has yet to apologize for it. In modern media, this more covert method of microaggression against Hindus has also become normalized. Rather than the focus and credit being on Hindu scriptures, it has become Western media, and trends of incense-cleansing Ganesha figures with explicit songs of swearing.
Personally, I have experienced the effects of both of these. In school, I have been offended numerous times by questions asking me to speak in an Indian accent, to make fun of Indian accents, to fix computers, and if my family owns a supermarket. People have reduced down my diverse culture to funny accents and my numerous deities unless it remains useful to them. Of course, when my religion begins to be useful to them, they use manifestations, chakras, and 369 methods. Despite speaking in a heavy Western accent, I have had numerous experiences where I have not been taken seriously because of my Indian nationality. The circumstances are obviously direr for those with traditional Indian accents. Growing up in a society that disrespects Indian culture, and packages it to be respected when Westernized sends out clear messages to Indian youth. Messages which are detrimental, and setback the Indian community.
To begin let us focus on the setbacks of Indian stereotypes in modern media. In modern media, Indians are portrayed as people with strong accents, specializations in IT, STEM, and supermarkets. We are mocked for our skills in IT, despite an Indian being responsible for bringing Photoshop to Windows. We are mocked for our stereotypical focus in STEM and studies, while an Indian invented cataract surgery. We are mocked for our entrepreneurship while Indian investments have contributed to 125,000 jobs in the US economy. Indian people are mocked and mocked and mocked tirelessly, and never given credit for the contributions to the modern world. Those with Desi accents are never seen as smart enough or educated and their opinions are instantly put on a lower level than someone who speaks in a Western accent. This is the modern-day effects of colonization and the power imbalance that still exists from the British Raj.
Years ago, when the Western world colonized numerous countries, India being one of them, they had one key reasoning: saving. The cocky supremacy of Western culture made white people believe that their imperialism was bettering the ‘savagery’ of our traditional culture. Western imperialism dominated India and reduced our traditional methods of doing things as ‘helping us’ by colonizing us with their Western beliefs. Everything Indian and traditional was seen less than, and everything Western was put on a pedestal. The effects of this colonization are still imminent in the media today: as Indian accents are reduced down to nothing but comedy, rather than words with value and meaning.
After looking at the setbacks of the depictions of Indians in modern media, let us look at the setbacks of Westernizing Indian culture. Westernizing Indian culture sends a strong message. Years ago, the British Raj stole the Kohinoor diamond, and to this day the Imperialist monarchy still glimmers this on the crown of the Great Queen who God Must Save. Re-packaging Desi culture as Western ideas disadvantages Indians further. Western media sends a message that Indian people, Indian values, and Indian beliefs are never good enough unless they are Westernized. Our society accepts and enjoys things more if they are Western, because of the association it has with modernity. Yet while society enjoys Desi culture in their Westernized ways, Desi people are only experiencing modern-day colonization. Let’s link back to the example I gave earlier of Hindu values. The examples of earlier have whitewashed and reduced Hindu values down. When Hindu values are presented by Hindu people: they are ridiculed. Hindu ‘pandits’ are joked about and made into humor. The multiple deities in the Hindu religion are made into rude questions by monotheistic religious people in Religion class. However, when they are presented by Western people such as Tiktok spirituality and Rihanna, they get accepted. They are no longer the diverse, beautiful, and multi-faceted methods of spirituality. They are instead trends, fashion statements, and momentary obsession by the dominating and repressive Western culture.
The harm to this has been briefly covered in the above paragraphs. There is significant harm done on the beliefs of Indian people, culture, and religion. However, there is an even more grave and impactful effect: on Indian youth. From a young age, Indian people will begin to internalize these ideas. A psychological approach to understanding behavior is the social learning theory, which has been supported by research from numerous psychologists such as Bandura. This approach argues that behavior is learned through a role model: someone similar to you who is receiving positive consequences for their behavior. As a result of this, you begin to vicariously reinforce those behaviors, because you understand that it leads to positive consequences for others. Desi youth will begin to vicariously reinforce and internalize these dangerous messages that are screaming through their screens of Western media. We begin to model these behaviors of self-hatred when it comes to our culture, as well as learning quickly that Indian accents are not to be respected. As a young pre-teen, I would occasionally joke about my parents' accents, because the media representation I had was positively reinforced for that behavior, and through vicarious reinforcement, I did the same. We quickly learn behaviors that are Western and demean traditional Desi culture. Children are told to hate their culture, and accents, and values unless it is Westernized and to disrespect and distrust Desi culture. They should not be subliminally manipulated by the hegemonic Western media that if something is not Western, it is not good. Yet they are.
This takes us to our question of representation. Is all representation good? No. Clearly not. The representation in Western media disadvantages Indian people significantly. Our representation should not be telling us that if we are stereotypical Indians, or carry out stereotypical Indian actions, then we are not good enough. Our representation should be showing us that we are diverse individuals, who exist for more than humor and white validation. That we are individuals who have every capability as any other Western person, despite our strong accents and polytheistic religions.
For all Western individuals reading this, introspect. Look at your humor, and at the trends, you are choosing to partake in. Understand the implications. No one is telling you to stop manifesting with chakras, but just understand its origins. Stop laughing at jokes of Indian accents, and degrading Indian culture. As for Desi youth, look at the people you are actively consuming, and the messages they send. Reconnect with your culture, and unlearn the ideas of Western media that continue to oppress us and hold us back from liberation.
