Artist Maria Qumar’s pop art is full of desi imagery, Hinglish phrases and

pop culture

references. (Photo Credit: Shark Sensac)

Sanjana Nagesh highlights achievements of South Asian women on her instagram account Brown Girl Gang

Maria Qumar's popular Instagram art account Hate Copy, makes pop art rife with desi imagery, Hinglish phrases (Photo Credit: Happy Monday)

Mocked by classmates about how she ate her food and wore mehndi, Nehal Tenany used to be embarrassed about being Indian. But the Indian-American blogger and digital marketing manager has not just got over it, she is now the proud co-host of The Woke Desi podcast that celebrates her Indian-ness.Tenany and co-host Annika Sharma, a 32-year-old author and health communications professional, cover everything from dating to domestic violence, and aim to create a community for the South Asian diaspora to come together and tell their stories. And it’s working — they get daily DMs with people pouring their hearts out. “We want to create a community and let people know — if you are a battered wife or dealing with an abusive situation, don’t feel like all the aunties are sitting in a room talking about you. Feel like you can come talk to everyone,” says Sharma.Over the last few years, there has been an explosion of content from the diaspora that shatters the ABCD stereotype. For the uninitiated, ABCD stands for American-Born Confused Desi — a term used to describe the children of Indians, mainly of those who went to the United States in the 1970s, who were desperate to be accepted. But now young artists, influencers and podcasters are done downplaying their desi-ness to fit into a certain mould, just as they no longer care being judged for not being desi enough. They’re creating their own identities and are part of an emerging subculture and voice of the South Asian diaspora — one that is young, irreverent, and unafraid of touching topics long considered off limits.Maria Qumar, who runs the popular Instagram art account Hate Copy, makes pop art rife with desi imagery, Hinglish phrases and pop culture references — whether it’s an illustration touting the importance of “dhoklas before chokras” or of a desi woman slapping Donald Trump, telling him “sudhar ja”. The Toronto-based artist, who moved from Pakistan when she was 9 years old, says her art is for desis , but an interesting by-product of her fan base of almost 2,00,000 on Instagram has been a number of non-desi people finding they relate to what she talks about, and learning more about South Asian culture. “When someone is having a conversation compelling enough, other people listen in,” says the 28-year-old.Social media has created the space for an entire ecosystem to showcase South Asian diaspora talent. That was the idea behind Brown Girl Gang, an Instagram account with 50,000 followers run by 23-year-old Sydneyresident Sanjana Nagesh. She features South Asian success stories, providing a glimpse at the kind of representation she felt was missing in her childhood. Researching all these successful South Asian women made her feel less alone — and that’s what it has done for her followers. “I get messages from people telling me that it has helped them feel proud in their skin and helps them own their culture,” she adds.It’s not just lone creators but a whole ecosystem of support and representation that seems to be slowly building. There are Facebook groups and a subreddit called ABCDesis where people discuss everything from mental health struggles, to not fitting in with their families, and of course — pressure to marry. There are also platforms to showcase their work like Brown Girl Magazine, or zines that focus on works by the diaspora like South Asian Kadak Collective that has featured work on everything from menstruation to how saris relate to the Madonna-Whore complex.Another illustrator taking over Instagram feeds with her fun illustrations is 23-year-old Pranavi Suthagar. Her account, @not__sari, features desi pop culture-inspired work. “I think it resonates with brown people because it pulls at a nostalgia we all share and experiences we relate to. My work speaks to first generation brown kids who often have no reference point to relate to in mass media,” says the Tamil graphic designer and illustrator.Combining their cultural identities and contexts, they are attempting to create communities and spaces where they feel understood. The tug of two cultures is strong for many of them, and while age and experience helps temper the acuity of this loss of identity, it seems as though there is a certain ability to embrace that in-betweenness and set up camp bang in the middle of it, waving a flag as if to say, “We belong, our voices matter and yes, we can be all these things rolled up into one”.